Is All Politics Local Or Totally Personal?

“All politics is local” is a widely adopted adage, credited to former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Tip O’Neill. The quote is more appropriate in a democratic, multi-party system

Surely, there is a reawakening by the political parties that many of the most pressing policy issues are best resolved at the local level. And it is looking like the adage will be exploited in the upcoming elections more than before.

Our adopted American systems of government—federalism—and democratic system are designed to deliver locally desired outcomes by leaving some decision-making to citizens at the local level. The American founding fathers designed it this way. They felt that even if the decisions might be worse than those made by professional bureaucrats, it was worth it for the local community.

The American founders designed a democratic, federal system to select politicians. Each town would select its representatives from people they knew. Those representatives would gather together and select a state representative from among themselves. Those state representatives who form the Electoral College would go on to elect the president.

The system consisted of a series of face-to-face decisions, where at each stage, people could select someone they had known intimately for years. It represents a more local form of democracy and a different style of conversation.

The conversation will include solving immediate issues like addressing insecurity, poverty, and other socio-economic challenges. It also involves promises to develop infrastructure and attract physical capital investments, among other development goals. The system is designed to prioritise voters, and politicians are obliged to be present in their respective constituencies to justify their capabilities.

The period of general elections is the time when politicians relocate to their constituencies. This is the time when they remember that local problems need boots on the ground as they make desperate efforts to connect with the people where these problems play out.

Pessimists would argue that once the political season ends, voters start chasing after the elected leaders, reminding them of the principles of local politics. When all efforts to be heard fail, voters press the political nuclear button: “We will meet at the polling unit.” And in most cases, the voters win by electing a different candidate. So, like in theory, all politics can be local in practice.

As a cautionary note, do not let anyone deceive you into thinking that politics is always and everywhere a local phenomenon. It is, on the contrary. Politicians can be deceptive. From my observations, in this country, every act of politics, whether local or national, is totally personal.

Loyalty, betrayal, the stitch-up, neutrality, mediation, tribal and ethnic colouration, and even religious positions are all entrenched in personal interests. Every compromise, every favour, every burden a politician carries each day is driven by self-interest. But they dress it up as an act of public service, but it is inherently self-interest.

My argument links the causes to those who altered our political and democratic system. Some could refer to them as the “old guard.” But do not confuse the “old guard” with the founding fathers of Nigeria. The latter is beyond reproach.

The old guard has recognised that power depends on viewing every mistake, every loss, every missed opportunity as a direct political consequence. Nothing happens by chance. Nothing is neutral to these political leaders. That is why they have survived various political cycles since 1999. They take everything personally. If a rival gains influence in their state, they see it as a challenge. A culprit must be found, and it must not be the godfather.

Defections are regarded as betrayals unless the defectors are themselves. Early-career politicians have no room for mistakes, for unlearning or relearning. They expect everyone who joins to be near-perfect except themselves. Even a small attention to the wrong camp becomes a matter of honour. They call some of them “cats with nine lives,” master strategists, political godfathers, and so on.

A relevant example is last weekend’s convention organised by a party faction in Abuja. We observed several political leaders attending the event to select the new leadership of the faction. These are leaders of the once-largest opposition party in the country. Many of them were part of the political party that governed for 16 years. By 2027, the party will have been out of power for 12 years. Ideally, the party is meant to challenge the ruling party in the 2027 elections. But the convention was designed to surrender the elections to help the ruling party’s leader—Tinubu—get re-elected. The political godfathers are well aware of the agenda, and they all seem to agree with it.

Now the godfathers are back to their various constituents. They will be telling their respective voters to turn a deaf ear and a blind eye to what has happened in Abuja. They will command them to invest heavily to contest at the local elections with questionable credibility and deflated morale. They know it is a futile effort for the contestants, but that is what serves their interests. If the contestants behaved as they did at the national level, they would be treated with contempt. They will be called hypocrites, betrayers and all sorts of names.

These are the people who have manipulated our democratic political system to become a personal business, and every event has been twisted to serve their personal interests. These people are treating the once-largest political party in the country like our refineries. They are only keeping the party afloat for their personal interests, never for the public good.

Surely, the political class is aware of the democratic system, principles, and the process. They understand that all politics is local, but they manipulate the system to serve their personal interests. Plain and simple.

•Written By Nasir Aminu