WHO ARE THE CULPRITS? POLITICIANS OR HOODLUMS

POLITICAL THUGGERY  IN NIGERIA 

Northeast, Yobe and Borno states in particular

     By: IBRAHIM MUSA BABA

    The word "hoodlum" here is simply described as "thuggery" in particular. Thuggery  can be an act of violence or behaviour by ruffians hired or instigated by politicians to intimidate their opponents.

    The answer to the above question here is both the politicians and the hoodlums are found culprits associated with the issue of political thuggery in Nigeria.

    This has convinced so many people to believe that the problems of poverty, unemployment among the youths, financial attractiveness of elective positions, the value system of wealth accumulation, the phenomenon of god- fatherism in democratic Nigeria; lack of political ideology and principles, absence of internal party democracy in contemporary Nigerian political parties and its attendant effects as well as ineffective security agency, account for the incidence of political thuggery in Nigeria.  Poverty which makes them willing tool for thuggery in the hands of desperate politicians; desperation or ‘do or die’ politics among some politicians, and the negative impact of money politics in the country’s present-day democracy.

   Sadly, we failed to understand that political thuggery is a serious threat to democratic consolidation in Nigeria because it scares credible candidates and followers to sort out their choices or opinions. With this, it is very common to see some politicians giving youths and aiding proliferation of arms, ammunition and other dangerous weapons purposely for acts of criminality.

   Unknowingly, political thuggery hinders public accountability of elective officers, thus, is a bane to good governance in Nigeria. It also increases the crime rate and the emergence of credible candidates in elections and a threat to the achievement of democratic dividends and exercise of citizenship rights in Nigeria.

   Unfortunately, instead of them to have a pathetic situation where the leadership don't have any sense of obligation towards the citizens which is supposed to be symbiotic. To say the least, politicians at the federal, state and local government levels are the highest paid public office holders; consequently, politics in Nigeria has become prebendal and wrongly perceived as a  lucrative venture where millions of naira are invested in the electoral process and billions of naira is reaped as personal profiting interests of politicians, their supporters and political god fathers seem to be the utmost in the pursuit of the vast majority of political office holders throughout the years spent in offices.

     The funniest thing about them is they don't engage their children, relatives or love ones to participate in the process of political thuggery or any sort of criminal activities but they influence the poor children through the use of money and drugs to engage in the heinous acts.

  Though in the society like ours, (Northeast, Yobe and Borno states in particular ) the rate of political thuggery has reduced as a result of Boko-Haram Insurgency.

     According to a research carried out by a Lecturer in the Department of Public Administration, University Of Maiduguri, Paul Y. Mbaya, on the topic, "The Implications of Political Thuggery on Socio Economic and Political Development of Maiduguri, Borno State" he revealed that "Over the years, the activities of thugs have been legitimatized and powerfully backed by the political class and unfortunately in Maiduguri most of these thugs have metamorphosed to Boko-Haram.

     The findings reveal that poverty, high rate of unemployment, high rate of illiteracy among the youths and families having more children that cannot be catered for by their income are responsible for the increasing number of thugs in the State. As a result, these children have no good education, no proper home training, and no food to eat and even shelter.

    These conditions they found themselves make them more vulnerable to be hired as thugs to rig elections, to kill and to engage in other social vices in the society. Similarly, thuggery in Maiduguri has caused mass exodus of people out of Maiduguri city to look for safer places because of the fear of death".

    By now, both the politicians and the thugs should understand that political thuggery is not the solution and it's unfair to democracy. It's hopefully therefore, that politicians 'll shun all forms of political thuggery or influencing people into social vices.