By Ata Ukuta
The recent expulsion from the House of Representative of George Santos, the American politician who served as the U.S. representative for New York’s 3rd congressional district from January 2023 to December 2023 brought unpleasant memories of the last presidential election in Nigeria that saw the emergence of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the President of Nigeria. George Santos was expelled within 11 months in office because of an endless stream of controversy. These controversies started shortly after winning election to the House of Representative in November 2022. The New York Times reported he had lied about his Wall Street career, his college degrees, having Jewish ancestry among other grandiose claims. As days became weeks and months the allegations piled up. After the New York Times revelations, it was discovered that his claim that his mother died in the 9/11 terror attacks was fiction. In May 2023, he was charged with 23 felonies, including wire fraud, money laundering and theft of public funds.
Bola Tinubu, like George Santos, is one politician with a multitude of question marks in their origin and financial stories. These individuals have seemingly mastered how the system works and know how to navigate their way to the top. They also know how gullible the masses can be. It is this gullibility that conning and criminal minded politicians continue to exploit to get to the top. That Donald Trump is the frontrunner of the next US Presidential election for the Republican Party illustrates this. Donald Trump is a certified liar, fake news peddler, tax evader, and someone would have overturned the last presidential election in his favour if the US is a developing country like Nigeria that lacks the system checks that checkmated him, yet he is the Republican frontrunner.
Many of us still believe that democracy is the best form of governance. Notwithstanding, as we can see from the emergence of George Santos, Bola Tinubu, and Donald Trump to the very top of their political ambition with all the technology available to law enforcement and electoral agencies, democracy is still remarkably flawed. If what just happened in the United States could happen there, what hope do we have in Nigeria and the developing world generally to right the wrong of electing those who should not even qualify from their party primaries? The US as a nation has in the past set some commendable examples like in the election of Barack Obama as their President for two terms and in resisting Donald Trump’s claim that the last presidential election was stolen from him. We are hoping they can set another good example by showing to the world that politicians like George Santos, Bola Tinubu, and Donald Trump are not above the law even in the face of numerous gullible followers.
Ata Ukuta is the founder/editor of Towncryyers.