Sir: Politicians the world over would be amazed at the kind of politics playing out in Nigeria and why almost everything in the nation’s political space seems to be redefining and twisting the main tenets of democracy.

However, those among them who have studied Nigeria’s trajectories for a while may likely never be too surprised but would simply continue to watch each new ugly trend with much irritation. Nigeria’s politicians must rank among the most unprincipled and difficult to trust crops of men in the entire world. It is to the eternal shame of political players in Nigeria that nothing they say ever stand the test of time and the masses have been taught to hold whatever any of them say with a pinch of salt.

Campaigns are always replete with promises that are pleasing to the ears which get the citizens regularly hoodwinked only for them to realise that they were used and dumped after the trick has achieved its aims and the victors are sworn in

The greatest evidence of hypocrisy and lack of principle on the part of Nigeria’s politicians is the propensity of most of them to cross carpet as soon as another party has taken over the rein of government.  To start with, their parties are even always without any clearcut ideologies to properly differentiate them from one another. What happens most of the time is just for few knowledgeable patty faithfuls to be saddled with the task of  coming up with anything that may appeal to the electorate.

Campaigns are begun with pledges and promises which are mere subterfuges since even the campaigners themselves know quite well that none of them would be  implemented. Again, while incumbent governments are often projected as evil the opposition would want itself seen as the liberator out to rescue the masses from poor governance.

While the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was in power, other parties went into several coalitions aimed at wrestling power from a party considered as being run by an autopilot. Several attempts at capturing power from the PDP failed until the terrorism in the North East went out of hand in the unfortunate story of the Chibok girls which brought about a general disenchantment with the ruling party and an opportunity for the electorate to say enough was enough. Now with the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the saddle of governance for more than ten years, it is now clear to Nigerians that both the incumbent government and the party it ousted are both a single side of a coin.

It is probably only in Nigeria that politics is played as a full profession and losing in an election therefore automatically translates to losing total relevance, a cross no Nigerian politician is ever ready to carry, and crossing to the ruling party therefore becomes the only way out. The APC came into power under the mantra of Change ,a slogan which Nigerians have waited in vain for years without seeing any fulfilment.

Yet, cross-carpeting of politicians from the other parties to the APC has been the order of the day. Indeed, if care is not taken, the biggest fear now is the tendency of Nigeria becoming a one party state with all its attendant problems. If and when that happens, the nation must have hit an irredeemable cul-de-sac with very dire consequences. It is true that the country has never had any good experience of a virile opposition party even in the past. But a final evolvement into a one-party state will be an ill wind that would never bring Nigeria any good

• Jide Oyewusi is the Coordinator of Ethics Watch International Nigeria