Nigerian Politicians under Comparison

Contradictory Realities of Nigerian Politicians: A Comparative Analysis

"In the developed worlds e.g America, UK, France, Japan, to mention just a few, people go into politics to serve; in Africa particularly Nigeria, people go into politics to be served."
-Ogiri John Ogiri
(in his 'The Cost Of Doing Nothing" Unpublished)

From my personal observations over the years, I have discovered that there are two categories of politicians in Nigeria: those who join politics to make and take money from the national treasury and those who join politics to put in more money for the benefit of the people.

Politicians in the former category have the tendency to see politics as a business venture where personal interest in profit maximization assumes dominance over selfless interest in national service. Put more succinctly, this category of politicians do not see politics as a mission to serve but an avenue for self-aggrandizement. This is why, in their campaign speeches, appeal to people's senses of emotions takes dominance over appeals to the people's sense of logic. Many are simply political demagogues. Majority (not all) of politicians in this category were either probably broke or never had the kind of wealth they had envisaged before joining politics. They see politics as a do-or-die affair. Vote-buying and elimination of those who stand in their ways either by hook or by crook is their stock-in-trade. Hence, on winning an election, there is this feeling of "ahaa, we have arrived". They are likely to focus more on making policies or appointments that favour the achievement of their interests than on those that are likely to promote national interest.They are usually very feeble in defeat and pompous in victory. For them, it is "a winner-take-all" when they win and if they lose, it is the "violent takes it by force". It is very difficult for them to run an all-inclusive government. However, they can become good politicians only if they can let go of greed, selfishness and violent disposition towards elecetoral outcomes (especially when they lose).

However, in the latter category are those who join politics for selfless reasons. Underlying their foray into politics is a genuine desire to serve others in a selfless way. They think of and see politics as a sacred mission to serve others. Because they have made their money from personal toils and efforts over the years, their entry into politics is not influenced by greed and selfishness. They never see politics as a do-or-die affair.They are usually very courageous in defeat and humble in victory. They try as hard as possible to avoid committing any of the seven social sins outlined by the great Indian human right activist,political leader and Hindu teacher, Mahatma Ghandi, in a letter addressed to his son.These are Wealth without work, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character, commerce without morality, service without humanity, worship without sacrifice and politics without principle. Because of the genuine motivations behind their seeking political power,when they are in power, they are likely to formulate policies and make appointments that reflect national interests. To leave an indelible imprint on the sand of history, however, this category of politicians must avoid the temptation to become power-drunk for "power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely".
Nigerian politicians, where do you belong?