‎What is Morality and What is Politics

MORALITY
principles concerning the distinction between right and wrong or good and bad behaviour.

POLITICS
the activities associated with the governance of a country or other area, especially the debate or conflict among individuals or parties having or hoping to achieve power.‎
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I was having a discussion with a friend and we seemed to have opposing views on the place of morality in politics. I did a little bit of research for and against the motion. Now before I go on - A little background information.

I'm someone you could describe as an "overly moral person" - those close to me have sometimes referred to me as having the gift of piety.
I'm an unapologetic idealist because I believe that within lies the power to create my own reality.
Until my advent into the stormy and uncomfortable world of politics, I used to see life as black or white - no shade of gray.‎ The "gray" ish, as far as I'm concerned is hypocrisy...it is either good or bad.

Let me put an example on blast here.
I was at Alaba international some days back to receive goods from Overseas. The traffic gridlock was messy and the man we hired drove us home through Ikotun.‎
I was certain we would meet the usual "go slow" that characterised the axis, but to my surprise the road was tarred. Everywhere looked cool and lifted.

It would suffice to mention that I was discussing politics with my co-traveller and the driver (who seemed to have a fair idea of issues beguiling the polity). At a point, I couldn't help but exclaim that Ambode is Working!!! I told them in the car that this is what we want, no sane person sees tangible results like this and still calls for the head of their leader.

It was at that point that one of them reminded me thus "But that Ambode na thief o, Fashola been no want am sef...."


Now, ordinarily, I would develop instant hate for him at such "damning hearsay" (I had heard the rumor before) instead I found myself holding brief for the governor. My words were in the lines of "I no talk say to thief na good thing o, and I no dey advise person‎ to run dat kyn parole. But, Guy, make we face am, e no easy to dey that kyn position wey money surround you and you no go pocket even one thing. My own be say, anybody wey reach there, as hin dey do for hinsef, make hin sef dey remember us."

At that point certain realisations occurred to me‎;
1. I just held brief for thieves

2. Since I could say so, chances are that when I ascend ‎a corridor of power, I may tow same path.

Immediately, I gave a rebuttal to defend myself from myself.

1. I told myself that everyone cannot be like me, and that I was merely judging a person's behaviour based on what they bring to the table.
Being a thief or not is a matter of personal character and principle (Morality), and quite realistically not everyone sees embezzling funds as such a thing that should be abhored. So now that we have most of them in power, I think it's better we adjust and pool our resources in demanding dividends of good governance from them.

2. I do not know what tomorrow may bring or what my life's journey holds, but I do know that I have a conscience that's really active. Even if I were to do something I KNOW is wrong, until I set my path straight again...no peace for me. Is this to say that I would not steal when in power? Yes, I do not intend to steal. I will not...but then again, if you've not been there, you can't tell it all.

So the bottomline here is that, in politics, I seem to be condoning what I would not ordinarily condole in another sphere of life. I believe it's the same for most of us.
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With the stories above, you'd find that there are about two mind boggling issues...

1. Should stealing in governance now be subtly condoned as long as we see results?‎

2. Is there any chance that the youth of today can decide to raise the bar against mediocrity by declaring thorough selflessness in leadership?

3. Can we practice morality along side politics?
Shouldn't those who argue against the motion by trumping the constitutionality card over morality also remember that there are elements of morality in constitutionalism?
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4. I was reading a similar discourse by Ogbonnaya Okomba Okorie and he made mention of issues which I will now list below; "What are the consequences of any conscious effort to seperate morality from politics giving that morality constitutes an integral part of any political culture?‎‎

5. Is acquiring power an ultimate goal in politics?

6. Can an evil means be justified by a good end?‎"
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Aufbauh:
"Politics have no relation to morals" - Niccolo Machiavelli

BALLOSKI:
No!





Madam, stop pretending , you know it's impossible.

OrlandoOwoh:
We know we you're going. With more comments, you'll reveal it. Abi no be u?

MizMyColi:

Buzz off this thread if you have nothing to contribute.

MizMyColi:


Yeah, I read about Machiavelli but someone asked, and I quote.
"What impact would politics have on the lives of people living in a society when the key actors have no moral qualms?"

Can it now be said of us that we employ the principle of morality when it suits us and our narrative and discard it when it doesn't?
Isn't that hypocrisy?

A moment of truth is upon us.

Aufbauh:


"This city is what it is because our citizens are what they are "- Plato
The decadence of morality amongst our political players is directly or indirectly traceable to the attitude of the followers.
When personal worth and clout irrespective of the premises is celebrated by the common man above value system, then morality will be sacrifice on the alter of mundane things.

OrlandoOwoh:

You're gradually coming out of your cocoon.

Coocooni ko; Coconut rice ni

Jakpon:
When we get to Biafra, everyhting would be sorted out. Biafra is an Eldorado, an Heaven on Earth. Biafra is a Country worthy of my patrotism


Free Nnamdi Kanu

Umu Chineke !!!

MizMyColi:


Charity begins at home Bruv.

MizMyColi:
[s][/s]


What exactly about my post suggests pretence?

Impossible is nothing BTW.

Reyginus:
Go on guys.

Proudlyngwa:
Yes politics and morality can coexist and yield positive results, politics is played everywhere in the market, in the church, school, village, social clubs and we see minimal immorality being exhibited because power is not absolute.
Partisan politics by the way is another thing because of what is put into it to get results otherwise known as do or die, I think the benefits in politics needs to be taken away

MizMyColi:


My point exactly.

Personally I thought I'd do well playing partisan politics, but two things didn't sit right with me.

1. Being partisan requires being loyal to a cause, and a set of people who are at the helm of affairs of achieving that...

2. The do or die affair doesn't quite sit well with the core of the nature.

Proudlyngwa:


1.Being partisan means being being loyal to a cause not a set of people as politics is about interest
2.unfortunately in Nigeria it's do or die that is why I advocate for reorientation of youth and I am counting on you.

1. That actually occured to me while I was typing that but I decided to post away.
If you know my antecedents here, you'd agree I'm more pro GEJ and by extension, pro-PDP.

I've had time to ask myself what changed really because prior to this time, I was neither a GEJ nor PDP sympathiser.

In the long run, I realized that it wasn't about the party or personality, but that which I perceived they stood for - which aligned greatly with my stand.
So you're right in that regard.

2. I'm counting on you too
We're all we have really.

I've come too far to back out now.
Having lost friends and "opportunities" for following that which I'm passionate about.

MizMyColi:


A penny for your thoughts?

Reyginus:
That's not necessary. Though I prefer to watch and learn in this case I'd slid in something. I don't think it is possible right now in this country. Let me summarize what I think in two premises.

1. Nigerians, People in general, are highly pretentious. While we pretend to love what is good, we, in reality, embrace only that our person accommodates. Not that we are only evil. No. We have embraced crookedness as a daily warfare. And there is a reason behind that. We love the idea of morally good acts as long as our 'little' sins, which are not worthy to be termed immoral in our eyes, are not threatened.

We have never voted out of the need for a morally whole leader but for a leader who share in our morality. Mind you 'we' here symbolizes the majority and this our sound morality is not even sound in the first place.

2. A Politician who intends to be morally good will not in any way be morally incapacitated. Not in his words but his actions. He'd negotiate his way by pricking the conscience of the society. He is not allowed to compromise else he looses his sound morality except it is the morality of a crook we are talking about here.

Not only will he fight the corrupt people the people who voted for him wished for but will also tell them to stop playing their loud music on the streets because the decibels harm the ear, to stop running their generators in the open because of the CO effects, also stop buying from kids who sell in traffic because of the accident and hold up probability rates. You are not to compromise either before or after the election no matter 'little' the sins are.

Conclusion: Since premise one defines morally good at acts as acts that are good and little evils which should be overlooked it cannot exist with premise two where the good is all that is good and good alone. That implies that the existence of morally good Politicians is dependent on the existence of a morally good masses. You can show me another picture.

MizMyColi:


There's none really.
Okay, how about this...

Let's say we were to depend on a morally good masses to produce a morally sound leader.

Isn't that a mirage, hence the impossibility is practicability? Especially seeing as it'd take a level of enlightenment for a majority to understand morality, sound morality.

Now, if that were the case, where does it leave folks like us who actually desire a difference in society? One that upholds fairness and equity in no small measure.

Do we just pack our bags and leave politics for some fairy godmother to come effect the change?

Or do we hope for some messiah who will lead us on the path of at least 50% morality, one who truly has a heart for the people, is all-inclusive and is in tandem with their sufferings?

Reyginus:
I don't think leaving it alone for the crooks to do more damage will help. Let me use this analogy.

Growing up as a boy in Northern Nigeria, more than twenty years ago, I was opportune to witness the reaction of the natives to health care professionals. Initially, the people, though not all, thought it was a strategy with roots from the west to depopulate the region because of their beliefs and cultures. We knew the evil lecturers behind the scene.

Whenever the professionals come around for immunization they either ask their kids to go inside or chase them away. There were consequences. Polio. Deaths and etc. There were families already made up on the explanation they want to understand. But still the health professionals never for a day gave up.

Look where we at today. Now we are Polio free. The northerners understand better Now. Though there are still few unconquered areas but our method is working. Preventable disease are now prevented in the lives of our Newborns, children and adults. The health workers never gave up. A messiah will only show up when you've invested in so many minds. He will never come if people who intend to follow politics in a morally good way stop to invest in the minds that are prone to the contagious illnesses going around.

So just keep doing what you are doing. That's the only magic I think will work here. There might be others though but then I don't know about it yet. Repeating anything to anyone is very powerful.

MizMyColi:

True talk. Repetition is the mother of necessity.
It's about re-programming and re-education