Defections: Nigeria’s political parties lack ideology, says Speaker Abbas

The speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, on Monday said Nigerians must find ways to make political parties fulfill their objectives and not turn it into business ventures by their managers.

“We must admit that the political parties in Nigeria are not founded on any principle or ideology,’’ said Mr Abbas.

Mr Abbas said this in Abuja, in his keynote address at a technical workshop on ‘Political Parties Bill, organised by the European Centre for Electoral Support’ for the House Committee on Political Party Matters.

Mr Abbas said that even though Nigeria practised the same presidential system as the U.S., the registration and regulation of political funding made a huge difference.

“In the USA, the Federal Election Commission regulates campaign finance and oversees aspects of party registration. In the United Kingdom, the Electoral Commission oversees party registration, campaign finance, and the electoral process.

“Sweden also has a well-established agency for party registration and party finance regulations,” he said.

According to Abbas, the Independent Electoral Commission has the power to register political parties and conduct elections, but there is a need to go beyond this.

“Investments were made, either as businessmen or politicians, to hijack the political parties and impose candidates on the parties during the electoral process,” he said.

The speaker noted that the political parties lacked principle or ideology compared to their contemporary advanced democracy.

Mr Abbas also noted that people who believe in the ideology of political parties have no reason to run from one party to another.

“In developed democracies, such as the United States of America, India, Canada, Germany, and the United Kingdom, members of political parties were known for their steadfastness in promoting the principles and ideologies of their parties,’’ he said.

He noted that in the United Kingdom, the Conservative Party, founded in 1834, had continued to advance the party’s ideology over the centuries, “even when it is out of power.”

“However, in Nigeria, the reverse was the case. We must admit that the political parties in Nigeria are not founded on any principle or ideology, the attitude and performance of the parties indicate clearly that they lacked the fundamentals,’’ he said.

The speaker noted that the Political Parties Bill, presently before the National Assembly, would promote party independency and public trust in political parties.

“The bill, when passed into law, would domicile party regulation in an independent body that would not be partisan in holding political parties accountable for things like campaign financing and the sources.

“It is expected to promote public trust in party system and improve governance as the people will become reasonable funders and tackle corruption,’’ he said.