Popular human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, and former federal lawmaker, Usman Bugaje, have held Nigeria’s political parties responsible for the country’s underdevelopment, 65 years after independence.
Speaking on Channels Television’s special independence anniversary broadcast on Wednesday, both statesmen lamented the lack of ideology and accountability in the nation’s political system.
Falana faulted the “winner-takes-all” mentality of modern parties, contrasting it with what obtained in the Second Republic. According to him, Nigeria needs proportional representation to end impunity and reckless governance.
“Without an ideological base or orientation for political parties, corruption will continue, impunity will continue, and recklessness will continue,” he warned.
Bugaje, on his part, linked Nigeria’s leadership recruitment crisis to the absence of ideological direction, describing political parties as “empty entities” that offer no real difference.
“I have said it several times: the political parties we have today have neither content nor conscience, they lack courage, and they are not good for anything,” he said.
He added that the frequent defection of politicians between the APC and PDP only reflects the hollowness of Nigeria’s party system.
