You Will Not Be Here Forever: A Love Letter to Nigeria’s Political Class

Dear Nigerian political leaders,

Allow me to compose this for you as a love letter.

It is not an attack, not a political statement, and not a condemnation.

It’s just a sincere reminder from one ordinary man to other ordinary men and women.

You never stay here indefinitely.

It might at times seem as though you will always be in power when you hold it; the convoy, the security, the rules and procedures, the people who surround you, the titles, your influence and the power to make decisions that affect the lives of thousands or even millions can all easily give rise to a feeling of importance and permanence.

Just take a moment to think about the people who came before you.

Nigeria has had as head of state presidents and members of the military, as well as governors, deputy governors, senators, members of the House of Representatives, ministers, commissioners and chairpersons of the local governments.

They had once been very powerful.

People waited for hours in order to see them. They struggled to gain their attention. Their words had a great deal of weight. Their signatures were able to alter people’s lives.

So where are all of them now? Many have been buried.

Presidents who have served in the past have been buried, governors who have served in the past have been buried, and former senators, ministers, legislators and other political office holders have likewise been buried.

Some of those who are still alive have become almost entirely irrelevant in today’s political discussions. Apart from their families, friends and a small number of people who remember their time in office, most Nigerians have little memory of them.

However, when they were in power, some may have considered themselves indispensable.

That is the lesson. The office is still there, though the person who lives in it has changed.

Let us ask you something even more fundamental. Yesterday people went to bed and did not wake up today.

Yesterday a number of people believed that they had many years left in them. Others had arrangements for next week. Some had intentions regarding next month. A few were already making plans for five years ahead.

But they are gone.

So, when I hear political leaders confidently talking about what they will do in five years, ten years or beyond, I sometimes wonder: Are you God?

Who do you think will have told you that you’ll be here in five years? Who said that you’ll actually be awake tomorrow?

It is beneficial to plan and beneficial to be ambitious, but humility means that we should remember we do not own tomorrow.

Power is temporary

My dear political leaders, political power does not belong to you as individuals.

You are given it for a temporary period. You were not the first person to have that office and you will not be the last.

Another person will one day take your chair, move into the official residence, use the official car and be awarded the same titles and honors that you are receiving today.

Which is why power is temporary. In my opinion, it is not merely temporary.

Power is ephemeral. It is temporary, short-lived and in the end unable to overcome death.

However powerful a person may become, there will always come a day when their power comes to an end. When life comes to an end, so do the titles. The grave doesn’t acknowledge a governor. It does not acknowledge a senator.

It doesn’t recognize a president.

It doesn’t acknowledge a billionaire.

It doesn’t acknowledge any political party, ethnic group, or social status.

We are all just ordinary human beings when we are in the grave.

That fact should make us humble.

What are you going to be remembered for?

This is the question I wish every person in political office would ask themself from time to time:

What are they going to think of me after I am gone?

Won’t they say that you have strengthened the institution which you were in charge of?

Won’t they say that you improved the lives of ordinary people?

Shall they claim that you treated people with dignity?

Shall they claim that you took advantage of your position to provide opportunities to other people?

Won’t they say that you left your office in a better condition than when you found it?

Shall your most important legacy be the wealth you have accumulated and the political enemies you have defeated?

The fact is that to be powerful is not the same as being remembered for something worthwhile.

Power causes people to fear you.

Providing good service helps people remember you.

To those who think they are untouchable

For the politician who thinks that no one can challenge him, it should be remembered that people had once held the same belief.

For the politician who thinks that his political system will last forever, recall the number of political systems that have already collapsed.

For the politician who thinks his influence will never cease, it should be recalled that political influence does have an expiry date.

For the politician who regards public resources as if they were his own personal belongings, keep in mind that you will leave them behind.

For the politician who believes that every opponent must be eliminated, recall that today’s opponent could turn into tomorrow’s leader.

Politics changes.

Power changes hands.

Mortality never enters into negotiations.

Make use of the opportunity.

I am not arguing that politicians should lack the privileges that are associated with their office.

They must not forget the responsibility which goes with those privileges.

If you have been given the chance to serve, then serve.

Use your influence to raise others.

If you are given power, then use it to strengthen institutions.

Whenever you have access to public resources, you should keep in mind that they are owned by the public.

If you have the chance to make a difference, then do so.

Since one day you will leave.

Once you have left, the question won’t be about how many people were around you.

The duration of your convoy won’t be the factor.

The number of houses you have built won’t be the measure of it.

It won’t be the amount of money you have accumulated.

The question will be:

What action did you take regarding the opportunity which was offered to you?

It is a love letter from me.

Dear political leaders, I am addressing you because I think that Nigeria needs you.

What we need are individuals who are willing to take on a leadership role.

We are in need of people who are willing to take difficult decisions.

We need politicians.

We need politicians who realize that public office is a trust and not an inheritance.

It is important that the people who are clapping you down today will be cheering someone else tomorrow.

People will eventually start using titles such as Your Excellency, Honorable, Distinguished, or Leader in reference to someone else.

The government house will be that of some other person.

The office will be occupied by someone else.

The convoy will go on without you.

And life will continue.

In the meantime, while you’re still in that situation, do a thing that’s worth remembering.

Create something that will last longer than you do.

Make sure that the institution continues to exist after you have left.

It is reasonable to offer help to someone who may never be able to repay you.

Choose decisions such that your children will feel proud to link with your name.

Above all, don’t forget that others have held power before you, and you will not be the last.

You won’t be here indefinitely.

Neither will I.

That is no threat.

That is no insult.

It is just the truth regarding all of us.

And if those of us who hold power remember this more often, Nigeria will be better for it.

Power is transient.

Power is ephemeral.

But the consequences of how we use it can outlive us.

With sincerity and hope,
Amb. Alabi Temitope Olumuyiwa