Civilian rule came. I was elected governor of Lagos through the AD (Alliance for Democracy), which came to be the pre-eminent party in the South-West. The PDP controlled the federal government and most states. Quickly, it revealed itself to be a party of authoritarian excess. It boasted it would rule the country for 60 years. Just as quickly I came to the realisation that continuation of thd PDP national leadership might be the death knell of my dream of a democratic Nigeria. As a democrat, I understood equal competition meant that my party could lose a free and fair election. I was and remain ready to take a fair loss. Yet, I was and remain unprepared to see victory stolen from the rightful winner and to see any party install itself in near perpetuity, notwithstanding the expressed will of the people.

My strategic goal became the defeat of the PDP at the national level during this period. When the 2003 election came, the PDP dangled an alliance before the AD. The proposal was that if we supported the PDP at the presidential level, the PDP would not oppose us at the state level. Because of my strategic perspective and the previous legal confrontations I had with the federal government due to its overreach, I rejected the proposal. It sounded too easy to be good. Sadly, some of my colleagues lost sight of the long-term objective; they were enticed to chase after short-term promises. Those promises were hollow. My friends chased themselves into a corner. Their non-opposition to the PDP at the presidential level would be repaid with deception. The PDP outflanked them in the gubernatorial race.

Lagos was to be the only state with an AD governor. From this setback and crippled position, we began the long journey that would reduce the PDP’s boast of ruling for 60 years to just 16.

Where We Are Now

Leading into the 2015 election season, progressive politicians throughout Nigeria and across party lines recognised the nation was in deep trouble. Corruption was rampant. The Boko Haram menace growing. The economy was unbalanced and government policy was not providing the right growth catalysts, despite favourable oil prices. PDP governance had overstayed its welcome. The people were ready for change. And we needed to develop the strategic leadership and determination to achieve the change.

Standing as separate parties, we could not best the PDP. We had tried that path; it led to defeat in 2011. A strategic rethink was needed.

To attain the goal of ousting the PDP and placing Nigeria on the road to progressive governance, the strategic linchpin would be the merger of opposition parties.

Time is inadequate to recount the complex journey toward the merger. My firm position was that only a merger would work. Anything short of that would disintegrate due to a combination of PDP enticement and the internal pressures arising from the strong identification of many politicians with their legacy parties. An ad-hoc alliance would be put asunder by these factors.

Our push for a merger of the old parties into a new entity carried the day. We would join hands to form a collective identity. The CPC and my party, ACN, ANPP, along with progressive elements of the APGA, formed the party. Key elements of the PDP would later join.

For this amalgamation to work, it had to be more than an anti-PDP gathering. It had to present a genuine, positive message that spoke to people’s hopes and aspirations.

We developed the theme of change as our strategic message. The broom became an apt party symbol. We would sweep out the old, sweep in the new and work hard towards prosperity for our country.

We fashioned a tripartite campaign message and strategy message. Security, Economy and Corruption. We would drive these three messages home as if with military artillery. However, we have only our leadership and strategic hammer.

Still all of this would have been to no avail without the right candidate. Given his stature and reputation for integrity, honest dealing and patriotic commitment, there really was no other candidate to have carried the day, than then General Muhammadu Buhari.

Yet, even with such a figure as our candidate, we foresaw the need to construct a public relations strategy to counter false accusations of religious intolerance and parochialism that would be hurled at him. We did this with great success because we prepared for these attacks beforehand.

We established other democratic and leadership strategies for our success, details of which time would not permit me to reveal here. We did not have the vast war chest of the PDP. Our efforts had to be sharper and more compelling. We accomplished this task.

We did not win the election by accident. I had studied the resulting and voting patterns of all the prior elections since 1999. Our team did an honest assessment and detailed assessment of our strengths and weaknesses and those of our opponents.

To win, we knew the votes we needed and identified the likely places and demographic constituencies from which the bulk of those votes must come. We did not waste time chasing votes we would not get. We concentrated on our strengths and the other side’s weaknesses, realising that our defence must be as tight as if we are inside the War College here in Abuja.

The other factor is one that is little spoken of. Our early insistence on biometric voter registration and the use of the card reader on voting day were of strategic importance as it is essential to safeguarding the integrity of the electoral process. In past elections, PDP vote padding had been massive in certain areas. We had to curtail this malpractice to achieve the objective of making the election as fair as possible, allowing us a chance to win.

The card reader minimised the rigger’s ability to steal the election. Before its use, results could be written without regard to the number of actual people who cast ballots. In a polling booth where 50 people actually showed up to vote, the rigger could falsify figures and claim that 500 votes were cast. With the card reader, the rigger could steal no more than 50 votes. The tallies could not be inflated beyond the number of actual voters.

Upon these strategic pillars, we built historic victory. For the first time in the nation’s history, incumbent president and party lost the national election. This historic transition further cemented our democratic evolving tradition and structures, advancing us closer to the overarching vision that guides my political actions.

Completing a personal transition, General Buhari would become President Buhari. And former President Goodluck Jonathan would become a stateman, winning worldwide commendation for conceding defeat, even before the final results were announced.

Where We Are Going

In relative short order, the Buhari administration has done what the prior government seemed unable to do. With the courage and dedication of the military, Boko Haram has been subdued. Also, notable and significant progress is being made against corruption. Press freedoms and civil liberties are protected, putting to lie those who cried that President Buhari would not respect democracy and rule of law.

To move closer to the overarching vision I outlined, we now have to shift primary focus to the economic front.

The decline of high oil prices threatens to be a long-term phenomenon. It placed the nation in recession last year and revealed the structural weakness of our national economy.

Strategic objectives during this period of economic uncertainty must be to re-engineer the economy bottom up, diversify the economic base, strengthen our industrial base, modernise infrastructure, enhance agriculture, and provide employment. And of course, ease of doing business must not be overlooked in order to attract foreign investment.

The lower oil prices also reduced hard currency earnings. This undermined the naira, causing a steep rise in the cost of imports. The higher prices have suppressed aggregate demand, causing a decline in business activity.

The challenge before us is a difficult but not impossible one. If we stick to the progressive beliefs of the APC, we shall overcome these difficulties to place the economy on surer permanent footing.

Government has shown its commitment to these ideals via its budget for this year and by the strong help it is giving state governments to meet their budgetary requirements. The unprecedented stipend programme for the poorest highlights the government’s concern for those who have been left unattended by the dynamics of the marketplace.

Achieving the desired economic restructuring will require a change in economic mindset and strategy. We must avoid the nostrums of mainstream orthodoxy that say government deficits are always bad. In the situation we face, deficit spending is essential to bolster aggregate demand and direct funds to projects that build infrastructure and bolster employment.

We must better harmonise monetary policy with fiscal policy. It undercuts our goals if monetary policy is unduly tight at a time fiscal policy begets deficit spending.

We must also realign trade policy with our need to create a meaningful industrial base and more potent agricultural sector. We can no longer allow cheap imports to preclude the development of industries and sectors strategic to our enduring economic future.

Conclusion

My public life spans over three decades. I have had my share of triumphs. I have felt the sting of setback.

Through it all, I have tried to keep faith with the overarching vision I earlier set forth – of a more democratic Nigeria with a robust economy that provides sufficiently for all-.

Throughout most of this time span, the strategic focus has been on politics, free enterprise and assuring democracy. I believe the toil and sacrifice has been worthwhile. We have secured democracy in Nigeria. Now, our strategic leadership must focus on realising the second part of that vision – the economic component.

It was first necessary to getting the political equation right. From this platform, we can then better reform the economic side.

The profound lesson my experiences as a political leader has taught me is the need to remain faithful to an achievable, well-articulated vision. Then to develop practical strategies and tactics to progress towards that vision. The vision is the unchangeable lodestar. Strategies and tactics may change as events unfold.

One must be intellectually vigilant, inquistive and always examining the utility of strategy and tactics. Always guarding against muddled thinking or allowing emotions to blind you. You make sure, as a leader, that you do not commit the grave error of giving primacy to transient strategies or tactics, over the permanent goal.

If you adhere to these leadership principles, you give yourself the best chance of progress toward your desired goals. In the imperfect world of human endeavour, no one can ask for more than this.

Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

This the text of a lecture delivered on Wednesday January 25, 2017 at the National Defence College, Abuja.