Senator Dickson Warns of Failing State, Says Nigeria’s Political Class Is Destroying the Nation

Senator Dickson

By AJIRI DANIELS

Former Governor and serving Senator, Henry Seriake Dickson, has issued a searing indictment of Nigeria’s political elite, accusing them of systematically destroying the nation’s democracy and institutions in a powerful speech delivered at a one-day workshop organized by the Nigeria Civil Society’s Alliance for Democratic Change (NCSADC) in Abuja.

Speaking on the theme “Safeguarding Nigeria’s Democracy Through Unity and Resolve,” Senator Dickson warned that Nigeria’s political class is “unknowingly committing class suicide,” asserting that their actions have not only weakened the nation’s democratic institutions but are pushing the country further into crisis.

“The Nigerian political class has killed this country, and you guys [civil society] should not let it happen,” Dickson declared. “They are killing Nigeria; they are making this country look small.”

He criticized the widespread practice of party defections, where politicians switch allegiances for personal gain, often abandoning the parties that gave them electoral mandates. He also expressed frustration with the subversion of institutions like the judiciary and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), accusing politicians of manipulating them to rig elections and silence opposition.

“Our own democracy is the wishes and caprices of the president or a governor… They don’t even care how the world looks at Nigeria,” he said, lamenting what he described as a deep disregard for constitutionalism and democratic norms.

The Senator from Bayelsa State didn’t spare the judiciary, describing it as “helpless” and often reduced to reading “body language” instead of interpreting the law. According to him, court rulings have become predictable tools in the hands of those who control power.