THE AKPOTI-AKPABIO SMACKDOWN: NIGERIA'S REPUTATION ON THE EDGE OF A GLOBAL PRECIPICE

 

Leadership is a sacred trust, a responsibility that demands wisdom, vision, and integrity. But in Nigeria, where power is a playground for the morally bankrupt, the so-called leaders have once again dragged the nation into the abyss of ignominy. The latest spectacle? A sordid duel between Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan—a scandal that has exposed the rot within Nigeria’s political class and, worse still, threatened to plunge the country’s already battered reputation off a global precipice.

Let us be clear: this is not about morality suddenly gripping the conscience of our legislators. If fortune had not shifted, if the tide had not turned, Nigerians would have remained blissfully unaware that their senators—who should be tackling the nation’s pressing crises—have the time and audacity to engage in such libidinal distractions. That the highest-ranking figure in the Senate, entrusted with upholding democracy and legislative integrity, is now enmeshed in allegations of sexual misconduct is more than an embarrassment; it is a damning indictment of Nigeria’s leadership culture.

What does this say about Nigeria’s ruling class? That power is but a tool for personal indulgence? That leadership is an avenue for unchecked appetites rather than public service? The Akpoti-Akpabuyo fiasco lays bare an unpalatable truth: our democracy is not just failing—it is rotting from within. The supposed guardians of our nation have turned leadership into a grotesque circus, a Banana Republic where personal impulses supersede public duty. Worse still, Nigeria now resembles Gotham City, where lawlessness reigns and self-serving elites thrive while the masses wallow in suffering.

If this is what democracy has become, one cannot help but wonder: would a return to military rule be preferable? Would colonial subjugation, for all its oppression, at least have ensured order and discipline? What is left of a democratic system where there are no moral exemplars, where the youth, eager to learn, are left with nothing but a roadmap to corruption, scandal, and vice? The degeneration of Nigeria’s leadership has made absurdities into norms, and what should be a disgrace is now the status quo.

Philosophers have long debated the ideal form of leadership, and Plato’s vision of the Philosopher-King—a ruler governed by wisdom and reason rather than impulse and greed—stands in sharp contrast to the tragic farce that is Nigeria’s government. Here, leadership is not in the hands of the rational elite, but in the grip of those driven by the basest appetites—men whose spirited egos and unchecked desires have transformed governance into a chaotic theatre of personal ambition. Nigeria has never known a true Philosopher-King, a leader whose reason dominates his impulses, whose vision supersedes his vanity. Instead, we have been ruled by men of unchecked appetites and raw ambition, incapable of self-control, let alone national transformation.

Until Nigeria finds a leader whose rational mind governs his impulses, the nation will remain trapped in a cycle of shame. Until we replace our self-indulgent overlords with those who see power as a responsibility rather than a birthright, the country will continue its descent into infamy. And if this is the best our democracy can offer, then perhaps we are not yet ready for it. Perhaps we are still waiting for the Philosopher-King, the leader who will finally break this cycle of disgrace and lead Nigeria out of the darkness.

                                                                OKOM, Emmanuel Njor (PhD)