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“One-Party Participatory Democracy” ~ by Chidi Anselm Odinkalu
On 13 December 1972, Zambia’s founding president, Kenneth Kaunda, signed into law the Constitution (Amendment) Acts, numbers 3,4 and 5 ending the country’s First Republic and ushering in a new constitution for the country, which promised a “One-Party Participatory Democracy” under “one and only one party…., namely, the United National Independence Party (UNIP).” All of this was to be realized under an official ideology of “Humanism.” The previous day, Zambia’s Court of Appeal had thrown out the case brought by veteran nationalist, Harry Nkumbula, in his appeal from the decision of the High Court dismissing his case against the establishment of a one-party state.
The developments leading to Zambia’s chastening detour into one-party authoritarianism under President Kaunda should offer an object lesson to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and all the people cheering him on in his transparent machinations to turn Nigeria into a single-party experiment denuded of opposition parties.
Zambia’s march to one-party rule began following the general election in December 1968. At that election, the ruling UNIP of President Kaunda had won an overwhelming majority. The African National Congress (ANC) of Harry Nkumbula came a distant second with a handful of members of parliament confined to Nkumbula’s stronghold in the southern province.
The constitution adopted at Zambia’s independence in 1964 established a multi-party system of government. In 1940, Godwin Lewanika emerged as the president of the Northern Rhodesia Congress, the first organized political party in the country that would later come to be known as Zambia. 11 years later, the party became known as Northern Rhodesia African National Congress under the leadership of Harry Nkumbula, a teacher. Kenneth Kaunda emerged two years later as the secretary-general of the party.
As their advocacy against white rule intensified, Nkumbula became more emollient while Kaunda became radicalized. Following a split in the party, Kaunda emerged in 1958 as the factional leader of the Zambia African National Congress (ZANC). In March 1959, the party was banned and Kaunda herded into jail. UNIP was formed from the ashes of the banned (ZANC) while Kaunda was in detention. Upon his release,Kaunda was installed leader of UNIP. In April 1961, Nkumbula was imprisoned for causing death by dangerous driving. By the time he emerged from jail in January 1962, Kaunda had eclipsed him politically.
Kaunda’s UNIP led the country to independence in 1964, with Harry Nkumbula as leader of the opposition. Following the December 1968 elections, however, speaker of the National Assembly, Robinson Nabulyato, declined to recognize Nkumbula’s ANC as the leader of the opposition claiming that the party could neither form a quorum nor execute the business of parliament or government. In doing this, Speaker Nabulyato channeled his party leader, President Kaunda who, mistaking himself for the country, had declared on the eve of Christmas in 1968: I cannot see how I can continue to pay a police officer or civil servant who works for Nkumbula…. How dare they bite the hand that feeds them? They must learn that it pays to belong to UNIP.”
As President Kaunda centralized power in and around himself, party management became more embittered into a contest between Zambia’s ethnic rivalries. In February 1972, with his most prominent political opponents detained, President Kaunda appointed a Commission to work out the modalities for a new constitution on the basis of single-party rule.
The job of the Commission was not to inquire whether the country desired to be run on the basis of one-party rule. Kaunda had already decided that it would. The only issue was how to bring that about. Comprising 21 members, Kaunda tapped Mainza Chona, his loyal Vice-President, to chair the Commission. Harry Nkumbula, leader of the ANC, declined his nomination as a member of the Commission. Reflecting the skeptical mood of the country, a basic education teacher advised the Commission at one of its public hearings that “the National Assembly should be turned into flats, since there was a housing shortage in Lusaka (the capital city) and no need for parliament in a one-party state.”
In October 1972, the Mainza Chona Commission reported to President Kaunda. Shortly before receiving the report, Kaunda dismissed opponents of single party rule as “idiots and lost sheep”; told the public service that they existed “to serve the party in power”; and informed “the churches and the judiciary that their continued independence rested on being effective ‘mirror reflections’ of the nation”, which he subsumed in the ruling party.
Things moved swiftly thereafter. One month after receiving the report, in November 1972, Kaunda issued his white paper on the recommendations of the Mainza Chona Commission. On 8 December 1972, Zambia’s National Assembly did something that observers of Godswill Akpabio’s 10th National Assembly will by now have grown used to: the parliament suspended their rules and standing orders and, in one swift afternoon session,passed three separate bills to amend the constitution, rushing each through first, second and third readings without debate or discussion.
Four days later, the Court of Appeal perfunctorily dispensed with Harry Nkumbula’s legal challenge. The following day, Kaunda signed the bills into law heralding the arrival of Zambia’s second Republic as a single-party state.
The new Constitution itself was not published until May 1973. The following month, on 27 June 1973, Harry Nkumbula entered into the so-called Choma Declaration, dissolving his ANC and announcing that he and the remaining members of Parliament from his party had joined Kaunda’s UNIP. His capitulation was complete as was Kaunda’s transformation into the autocrat that he dearly desired to be. Delta’s State’s Sheriff Oborevwori in Nigeria will be relieved to know that he is not without storied predecessors in the pantheon of political harlotry.
Zambia was not the only country in which the judiciary acted as midwife to dismantling democratic pluralism and replacing it with a one-party autocracy. At its 1965-66 session, Sierra Leone’s parliament adopted a resolution asking the government to “give serious consideration to the introduction of a One Party System of government.” To implement this resolution, in April 1966, the government constituted a committee with the Orwellian mission to “collate and assess all views on the One Party System both in and out of Parliament and to make recommendations on the type of One Party System suitable for Sierra Leone.”
Three months later, the government issued its White Paper on the recommendations of the Committee. On 3 January 1967, the Supreme Court of Sierra Leone buried the legal challenge to the process of converting the country into single-party rule under a rash of legal technicalities. Unknown to them, Sierra Leone’s descent into eventual conflict in the next generation had begun.
It is impossible to behold the orchestrated emptying of opposition political parties currently on-going in Nigeria without recalling these examples from sister African countries which presaged deeper descent into constitutional instability. The return of President Tinubu to the country after his extended Lenten retreat to the land of the Marian Apparition (in Lourdes)has coincided with a rush of politicians seeking to outdo one another in emptying the country of viable political parties.
Ironically, President Tinubu himself represents the example of a politician who resisted this tendency. After President Obasanjo’s Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) stole nearly all of the South-West from his Alliance for Democracy (AD) in 2003, Tinubu, then the only surviving opposition governor in the region, refused to give in. It took him two decades of back-breaking rebuilding to work his way to the top of the political grease-pole in the country. As he embarks on his owntransparent journey to a “one-party participatory democracy”, President Tinubu may wish to be reminded that of the major misfortunes in life, few are as ruinous as the tragedy of fulfilled desires.
A lawyer and a teacher, Odinkalu can be reached at chidi.odinkalu@tufts.edu
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VIRAL VIDEO: Moment Yahaya Bello Orders Kogi State House Members to Sit on Floor, Gives Strict Directives
A viral video circulating on social media has captured former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello making newly elected State House of Assembly member, Hassan Shado, and his supporters sit on the floor during a meeting in Abuja.
The meeting took place at Bello’s residence on Monday, where he received members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to discuss party unity and responsibilities.
Shado, who won the Dekina-Okura II State Constituency by-election on August 16, was formally presented to the former governor.
INEC declared Shado the winner after he polled 55,073 votes, defeating Godwin Meliga of the PDP, who garnered 1,038 votes.
During the session, Bello emphasized that Shado must strictly obey the directives of Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo in all legislative matters.
He drew his ear to stress the importance of cooperation, warning the lawmaker to align with Assembly decisions even when he did not fully understand them.
Bello said, “Go and cooperate with the Speaker and other members of the House of Assembly. Support Governor Ododo in everything that comes to the Assembly, even if you don’t understand it.”
Bello also reminded Shado that political victories are collective achievements.
He stated, “No candidate wins an election alone. Your people worked tirelessly from nomination to election day. Do not let them down.”
He urged inclusivity, consultation, and collective leadership, emphasizing that unity remains the key to APC’s continued success in Kogi State.
The former governor praised the people of Kogi East for demonstrating unity, which he said had been lacking in the past.
He further expressed confidence that APC would retain all major political positions in upcoming elections, declaring, “Our President, Bola Tinubu, will be re-elected.
Governor Ododo will be re-elected. All our candidates will continue to win on our great party’s platform.”
Bello’s post-governorship period has been marked by controversy.
The EFCC accused him of diverting over N110 billion from Kogi State coffers during his tenure.
He evaded multiple court summons and even a failed arrest in Abuja that led to a shootout. Ultimately, Bello surrendered to the EFCC on November 26, 2024, after months of avoiding legal proceedings.
Despite his legal troubles, Bello maintains influence over APC lawmakers in Kogi and continues to assert political authority, as shown in the recent video with Shado.
Watch the video below.
The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, has urged all Nigerians to acquire combat skills such as Karate, Taekwondo, and Judo to protect themselves in the face of increasing danger.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Thursday, August 21, General Musa likened learning martial arts to other essential survival skills, including driving and swimming.
“That one should be taken as learning driving, learning how to swim.
Whether we have war or not, it is a survival instinct,” he said.
He added that in Europe, swimming and basic security education are compulsory because citizens must understand and practice personal safety.
The defence chief emphasised that the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) should incorporate unarmed combat training into its programme to prepare graduates for real-world threats.
He explained, “That’s what the NYSC is supposed to do, but the NYSC has been watered down to three weeks. Self-defence is very important.
Unarmed combat, swimming, driving these are critical aspects of human survival. We should never take them for granted because they prepare us for the future.”
General Musa further encouraged Nigerians to remain situationally aware of their environment, alerting authorities to any suspicious activities or individuals.
He said, “The world we are in now is dangerous. We have individuals who don’t mean people well. They kill for whatever reason.”
Highlighting evolving threats, General Musa disclosed that terrorists increasingly use gold to finance their operations.
He noted that complex international networks make it difficult to immediately expose or prosecute these financiers. “Gold is the main source.
They circulate it through various channels, including foreign links, which complicates intervention,” he explained.
General Musa acknowledged that bad roads and challenging terrains hinder rapid military response to attacks.
He said, “Many Nigerians expect immediate intervention from the Armed Forces without understanding the logistical challenges. By the time information reaches us, terrorists have already struck and vanished because they move more quickly in these regions.”
He added that improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the North-East further slow troop movement.
Regarding the Southeast, General Musa noted that the arrest of pro-Biafran agitator Simon Ekpa in Finland in November 2024 has improved security in the region.
He said, “Troops are actively pursuing Ekpa’s lieutenants in Imo, Enugu, Anambra, Ebonyi, and Abia states. We will continue operations until all threats are neutralised.”
The CDS also praised the synergy among the Nigerian Army, Air Force, and Navy, which led to the arrest of Ansaru terrorist leaders, describing it as a major success in the fight against terrorism.
General Musa concluded by announcing an African Chiefs of Defence Staff conference to foster continental collaboration and enhance regional security efforts.
Detectives from the Akwa Ibom State Police Command have arrested a man posing as a medical doctor following the death of a 35-year-old woman, Blessing Sunday Etim, during an alleged illegal abortion.
The suspect, identified as Sunday Okon Akpan, reportedly owns and operates the Full Life Medical Centre (FLMC) in Ikot Obio Odongo, Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government Area.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Timfon John, the spokesperson for the Akwa Ibom Police Command, revealed that police launched a search for the victim after receiving a distress call from her mother.
DSP John stated that operatives acted quickly following the report, which indicated that Blessing had gone to work at the FLMC and never returned.
According to police reports, the suspect attempted to secretly dispose of the victim’s body in her room.
A co-tenant, who witnessed the act, raised an alarm, forcing the suspect to abandon the corpse and flee the scene.
Police quickly arrived at the scene, where detectives discovered a premature foetus, confirming the occurrence of an illegal abortion.
Police traced and arrested Sunday Okon Akpan, a resident of Afaha Offiong village, Nsit Ibom LGA.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the suspect is not a licensed medical doctor or nurse but a community health practitioner who allegedly used his clinic to perform illegal medical procedures, including abortions.
The health centre has since been found abandoned.
DSP John confirmed that the victim’s body has been deposited at a morgue for preservation and autopsy, while investigations continue to uncover more details surrounding the incident.
She also promised to update the public as the probe progresses.
This shocking incident highlights the dangers of unlicensed medical practitioners operating clinics and offering illegal procedures.
Police authorities are warning residents to verify the credentials of anyone offering medical services and to report suspicious activities to prevent similar tragedies.
As the investigation unfolds, Akwa Ibom police have vowed to ensure that justice is served, and the public remains safe from unqualified medical practitioners operating in the state.
The Trump administration has announced a sweeping review of more than 55 million foreigners holding US visas, aiming to identify potential violations that could trigger visa revocation or deportation.
In a statement to The Associated Press, the State Department confirmed that all visa holders are now subject to “continuous vetting.”
Officials will examine any indicators of ineligibility, including overstaying authorised periods, criminal activity, threats to public safety, engagement in terrorism, or support for terrorist organisations.
If authorities find evidence of such violations, they will revoke the visa, and individuals already in the US could face immediate deportation.
Officials stressed that the review targets both individuals residing in the United States and those holding multiple-entry visas abroad.
Since assuming office, President Donald Trump has prioritized strict immigration enforcement, targeting not only undocumented migrants but also holders of student and visitor exchange visas.
The current vetting process extends far beyond prior reviews, potentially affecting individuals who initially received approval to stay in the US.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, last year the US had 12.8 million green-card holders and 3.6 million people on temporary visas.
Immigration policy expert Julia Gelatt of the Migration Policy Institute noted that the 55 million figure likely includes individuals living abroad with tourist or business visas. She questioned whether allocating resources to review people unlikely to return justifies the scale of the initiative.
Alongside the review, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on X that the US will immediately halt work visas for commercial truck drivers, citing safety risks and threats to American jobs.
“The increasing number of foreign drivers operating large tractor-trailer trucks on US roads is endangering American lives and undercutting the livelihoods of American truckers,” Rubio wrote.
The administration recently strengthened English proficiency requirements for foreign truckers following incidents where language barriers contributed to accidents. State Department officials confirmed they are pausing the processing of new work visas to reassess screening and vetting protocols.
“Ensuring that every driver meets the highest standards protects American workers and maintains a secure, resilient supply chain,” the department added.
Experts warn the broader implications of the review could ripple across the US economy. Edward Alden, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, explained that the administration’s policies aim to discourage companies, universities, and hospitals from employing foreign workers.
“The economic consequences will extend far beyond individual visas,” Alden said, emphasizing that employers risk compliance issues if they continue hiring foreign staff.
The review represents the most comprehensive enforcement action in recent US history and signals that the administration will aggressively monitor both legal and temporary visa holders to maintain national security and prioritize domestic employment.
The 2023 Labour Party (LP) vice-presidential candidate, Datti Baba-Ahmed, has warned Nigerians that the opposition coalition under the African Democratic Congress (ADC) is giving false hope about rescuing the country from underdevelopment.
“They are deceiving us,” Baba-Ahmed said during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday.
Baba-Ahmed, who ran alongside Peter Obi in the 2023 presidential election won by Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) expressed his willingness to be Obi’s running mate in the 2027 presidential election.
Although Obi has shown interest in the 2027 race and is aligning with ADC coalition figures such as David Mark, Atiku Abubakar, Nasir el-Rufai, Rotimi Amaechi, and Rauf Aregbesola, Baba-Ahmed stressed that he wants Obi to remain in the Labour Party and contest as its presidential candidate.
“I’m in the Labour Party. I’m a Peter Obi man. I still want Peter Obi to come back to the Labour Party and contest the 2027 election,” Baba-Ahmed stated.
When asked about his plans for the 2027 race, Baba-Ahmed confirmed his readiness to serve as a running mate for like-minded leaders committed to restoring Nigeria.
“If Nigeria is still around and there is an electoral system to follow, my love for Nigeria is undying.
I would appropriately associate with groups and individuals aligned with restoring the nation,” he said.
Baba-Ahmed also revealed two potential leaders he would consider deputising, with Peter Obi being his primary choice. “The first one has not said anything.
The second one is Peter Obi. I’m always with Peter Obi until he decides not to,” he added.
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