No frequent defector has ever become president – Omokri

A former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, on Tuesday claimed that in 64 years of Nigeria’s independence, no politician who has frequently switched parties has ever been elected as the country’s President.

Omokri, who prides himself as a table shaker —a slang term which means to cause a stir or to challenge the status quo, often by directly addressing or confronting those in positions of power or authority, argues that political consistency is essential for national stability.

The ex-aide, in a post on X, examined the political trajectories of Nigeria’s past leaders, stressing a pattern of relative party consistency. He pointed to Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Shehu Shagari, Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, and Goodluck Jonathan, all of whom, he claimed, maintained singular party affiliations throughout their political careers leading to the presidency.

He wrote, “For the sixty-five years of Nigeria’s existence as an independent nation, nobody who has jumped from party to party has ever become President.

“Tafawa Balewa was in one party only. Ditto for President Shagari. Presidents Obasanjo, Yar’adua, and Jonathan were only ever in the PDP.

“Buhari was in the ANPP until the party collapsed into factions. Then, he formed his own party, the CPC, which eventually coalesced with others and became the present APC.

“President Tinubu was in the AD, which became the ACN, which merged with the CPC and the nPDP to form the ruling APC.

“The others were military men who had only one constituency-the Nigerian Armed Forces.

“Nigeria is a very diverse country, and this can cause tensions. Only a politically stable person can stabilise the nation.

“The best predictor of the future is the past.

“Those who jump from party to party cannot bring stability. They can only bring apathy and anarchy.”