The Disappointing Elements of Populism and Democracy; Lessons For Africa

I woke up from this long dream, my heart is still racing and my body is drenched in sweat. In it I was confronted with the following questions and later was asked to oversee Freetopia!

Where did Freetopia go wrong? What is wrong and what is right anyway? What is better, for Freetopia? To be stable or to be perfect? The Ozymandian (read president) came to power following a coup. The Ozymandian (Ozy) promised and concentrated effort on rights, interests and choices of Freetopians as individuals. 

Ozy, was first and foremost consciously POLITICAL.  So, because of the political, this led to inclinations or connections to other determinants including working with a team of like minded people. Driven and willing to sacrifice for a common goal. The Ozy would then proceed to cleave Freetopians into small target groups for better outcomes of the Ozy administration goals.

Ozy began the Ozy quest with employable Freetopians! ATOMIZATION. By targeting population groups (demographies) e.g., put in place a civil/public service structure ready to take in 2% of the entire Freetopian population. Only 2% ? That is when realities hit Ozy so hard that Ozy got permanent tummy cramps. Next, Ozy invited development partners and motivated them to absorb as many employable Freetopians as possible. 1.5% percent of the entire population only? That was the max!

Ozy then called on Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) to work on absorbing the remaining employable people. 3% of the entire population? That was all CSOs could absorb! 

Ozy was now concerned about permanence, turnover, quality of work, outputs and the like because Ozy was dealing with human beings.  Humans by-nature come fitted with potential to enrich, destroy, harm or cherish themselves. But, humans are smart too. They crave purpose. 

So, Ozy never lost heart. Ozy set down categories of certainties which are also known as pillars of governance. These marked the points at which Ozy detractors derided Ozy and the supporters embraced. 

Humans! 

Humans drive and crave segmentation. Ozy is aware segmentation is the fuel of plurality. Plurality is the fuel of identities. Identities are the soil in which needs grow. Examples of identities included the fact that Freetopia was the only country with 75% of the population below 45 years! All humans crave satisfaction of  basic needs: housing, nutrition, health, quality life, rights and freedoms. 

By this time, Ozy was set into a hubris. All the government departments were set in motion to address the basic needs as much as possible. Ozy had mapped out a quest for certainties, most times Ozy took the prejudiced  path and was disposed to prefer what was familiar. This gate pass scenario also created uncertainties because Ozy ended up not employing some people. Ozy preferred those who were unquestioning and who could be sent on errands which surprisingly they would execute effectively or otherwise. 

Ozy is entitled to the privilege from fear. It is given that all who get by in Ozy’s inner circle must be such that Ozy is not scared they will take the Ozy life! Ozy’s desires for a perfect country may be subsumed by the reality of this fear (not paranoia). Ozy’s social support spaces must be conducive to thriving, survival and leading a quality life. In turn, Ozy is freed from paranoia. Ozy, then is able to free up the instruments that ensure safety, security and productivity of government for others. Good governance for that matter! This is the hallmark of an adopted social contract. 

At this point as much as possible, Ozy makes government available as a commons. Internally, Ozy allows party politics to prevail, the judiciary is impeccable, military is remarkable, aristocracy is benevolent. 

Ozy then embraces globalization, adopts and adapts Western/Eastern (The term Orient smirks of colonial prejudice and is no longer politically correct) approaches to development. More of their finesse, finances and marketization principles come to Freetopia. The rules of the game change right before Ozy’s eyes. Credit flow has different demands Ozy has to fulfill in order to be in the good books of the West or East! 

Ozy is now at crossroads. The primary agency is for Freetopia but the demands of globalization are real but unseen by many and are so powerful that they threaten Freetopia's sociopolitical contexts. Ozy is now forced to have allegiances to more demanding forces, bound by international laws and political economy because resources have to be made available to all and sundry. So, not only does Ozy have to make the  government a common but the resources of the country as well. 

Ozy now spends more time embroiled in adjudicating over the tragedy of the commons. Everybody thought that somebody would use the resources judiciously. It turned out that nobody, not even, Ozy did!