Nigeria’s shadow cabinet

The talk-back option is an essential ingredient of any democracy. In the parliamentary system of government, for instance, this counter-perspective can easily be seen in the phenomenon of the shadow cabinet.

The shadow cabinet is a feature of the Westminster system of government. It comprises a senior group of opposition spokespeople who, under the leadership of the opposition leader, form an alternative cabinet to that of the government and whose members shadow or mark each individual member of the cabinet. Members of a shadow cabinet are often but not always appointed to a cabinet post if and when their party gets into government. It is the shadow cabinet’s responsibility to criticise the policies and actions of government, as well as offer an alternative programme.

Going down memory lane, it is evident that Nigeria at a point in time had the facility of a shadow cabinet as part of its governmental structure. Our specific reference here is to the country’s First Republic. At that point in time, the shadow cabinet was officially embodied in social forces like Obafemi Awolowo and Anthony Enahoro. Such, indeed, was the debating skills of the latter that he was widely regarded as a consummate debater who gave the then government of Tafawa Balewa a good run for its various policies. And then, the soldiers struck. The euphoria which greeted the coup then overwhelmed the fact that Nigeria’s political development as regards the critical inter-play between the government and opposition had been arrested.

Courtesy of the long winter of military rule in the country, the notion of shadow cabinet virtually disappeared. Even when it reared its head in other forms, it was viewed either as an anomaly or even as an anathema. And as if to indicate that the shadow government was destined for the grave, the consequent adoption of the presidential system virtually served as its death-knell. But then, as they usually say, successes outweighed failures, such that even in a presidential system, a shadow government of sorts emerged.

In the Second Republic, the then opposition under Awolowo’s leadership came near to what can be approximated as the loyal opposition. At a point in time, the opposition had cause to sound the alarm that the economic ship of the nation was sinking. In what can be regarded as a very strategic response, the then leadership of the country pressed a renowned economist and professor into service. Predictably, this cerebral social force countered the opposition that all was well with the Nigerian economy. The rest, as they say, is history. The opposition turned out to be right, since a few weeks down the line, the government in response to the economic downturn was compelled to come forth with the Economic Stabilisation Act of 1982.

In contemporary times, Nigeria’s shadow cabinet is clearly embodied in the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its spokesman, Lai Mohammed. Almost at every turn, the APC, as embodied in Mohammed, is to be found engaging the government on several fronts. And as such matters go, sometimes the style and language can be very combative and acerbic. But then, such a seemingly unsavoury phenomenon goes with the territory. After all, the inter-play between the opposition and the status-quo is not supposed to be a tea-party. Rather, it is in essence something of a clash of ideas whose overarching aim is to ensure a higher and better Nigeria.

At this point, however, we wish to say that our political system is not well served by the knee-jerk reaction of what comes closest to shadow government. More often than not, what we have really had are reactive and staccato responses to government policies and programmes, such that close observers of our political scene are of the view that beyond the reflex which seems to hallmark the shadow cabinet, very little can be seen in terms of robust initiatives. Some have even gone ahead to counter that it is the Goodluck Jonathan administration alone which provides ample fodder for the opposition.

As a corollary to the immediate foregoing, Nigerians are in the dark as regards the position of the APC on critical issues like the philosophy cum ideology of government, housing, health, security, education, and all other variables which go into the making of a wholesome society.

Thus, while we commend the APC and other like-minded social forces for their constant and consistent engagement with government, we are also of the conviction that such forces need to raise their game beyond the automatic posture of “I oppose you” syndrome. This is more so because the crucial 2015 elections are virtually at the door. Thus, Nigerians deserve to know what the APC really stands for. This is perhaps the only way the party can puncture the contentions of cynics who have deposed that what the hapless Nigerian has to contend with between the APC and PDP is, in reality, a Hobson’s choice.