By ABUBAKAR YUSUF

The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, His Lordship, Most Rev. Fr. Mathew Hassan Kukah, has advocated for new democratic practices, if the country must move forward in the game of politics.

Kukah who made the observation on Friday during the validation session on the needs assessment of political parties sponsored by the Kukah Centre- European Union support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN) held at Rock View Hotel in Abuja.

He expressed reservations as to why over 90 million would register to vote in an election, but only about 20 million voted, saying this was an indication of a lot of discontent from Nigerians to the political class and the political system.

The Bishop maintained that the political class has a lot to do to inspire confidence in ordinary Nigerians who constitute the voting population, through sane democratic practices, good governance and doing things the right way.

“We keep referring taking Nigeria’s democracy to the level like that of Rwanda, but have forgotten Nigeria is different from Rwanda in all context, so if we must take to Rwandan democracy, we must learn to do the right thing,” Bishop Kukah said.

“How can a public officer who got estacode to travel with 50 members of staff , only end up in travelling with 20, yet in possession of estacode for the original 50 people, and you expect democracy to work in that kind of environment,” he added.

He said from generation to generation, Nigerian democracy has been enmeshed in corruption, self-centeredness, aggrandizement and tribal tendencies, stating that no country’s system thrives amidst glaring anomaly.

He said the political class was not doing enough to salvage the whole situation right from their corridor, making an instance with legislative aides appointed by members of the National Assembly.

"Legislative Aides of federal lawmakers who are expected to be people of proven integrity and intelligent, are populated by friends, cousins, nephews, brothers and sisters against the original norm,” he said.

The Priest commended the women folk for their clamour and affirmative action on 35% representative at the public space, but warned that it must not be shrouded around corruption, self-centeredness, enrichment, religious and tribal colouration.

Kukah said the current leadership and followers in the current dispensation lack inspiration from the political class, because of its porous nature and practice.

He said that lack of consistency and continuity had affected adversely the new generation of Nigerians and leadership, stating that the need for holistic re-appraisal was desirable.

However, he expressed confidence that with concerted efforts, he said he was hopeful that the country would be turned around in the next decade, with a reformed polity.