By joshua THE CRUEL PARADOX OF POLITICAL DECAMPEES: MEN IN SEARCH OF EASY VIRTUES
By Musa Bakare
Politics, when stripped of its noise and glitter, is ultimately a moral enterprise. It is not merely about occupying public office; it is about honouring sacrifice, rewarding loyalty, preserving institutional memory, and ensuring that justice remains the foundation upon which enduring political institutions are built.
This is a reflection on party loyalty, sacrifice, justice, and the moral burden of political leadership. Whenever politics abandons these enduring principles, it begins to consume itself from within.
There is an ancient truth every generation ignores at its own peril: a house that forgets its builders will one day search in vain for men willing to build another.
In many respects, this is the painful paradox confronting numerous foundation members of political parties in Nigeria today.
The tragedy is not that politicians defect. Defections are an accepted feature of democratic politics. The real tragedy begins when yesterday’s fiercest opponents suddenly become today’s privileged custodians of a party they neither built nor defended during its most difficult seasons.
History cannot be rewritten by appointment letters. Political appointments may confer authority, but they cannot manufacture legitimacy. Legitimacy is earned through years of sacrifice, steadfastness under pressure, and unwavering commitment when victory appeared distant.
Many of those who today speak the loudest within the APC invested their political energy, until recently, in sustaining the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), particularly in Kogi State.
They fiercely opposed the APC, ridiculed its ideals, and criticised those of us who remained steadfast in our commitment to the party. Yet, soon after crossing over, many found themselves occupying strategic positions and enjoying privileges that have remained beyond the reach of men and women who endured years of political hardship to keep the party alive.
That reality inevitably raises difficult questions about justice, fairness, and political memory.
The APC’s historic victories in Kogi State and at the national level in 2015 did not happen by accident. They were built on uncommon courage, sleepless nights, enormous personal sacrifices, and the unwavering commitment of thousands of loyal party members who believed in the vision represented by the Audu/Faleke political movement.
They stood firm when doing so carried enormous political risks. They defended the APC before it became fashionable. Many paid heavy political, financial, and personal prices. Some lost opportunities. Others endured intimidation and exclusion.
Many of us remained resolutely loyal to our leader, Rt. Hon. James Abiodun Faleke who took over the mantle after the unfortunate demise of Prince Audi Abubakar, and had continued to do so today and going forward.
It was this unwavering commitment that fundamentally altered the political trajectory of Kogi State and ended years of PDP dominance. History owes such sacrifice honesty.
The Holy Scriptures remind us that “the labourer deserves his reward.” Justice demands that those who sow should not become strangers when the harvest arrives.
A political family that continually rewards late arrivals while neglecting its faithful builders sends a dangerous message to future generations: that loyalty is a liability and opportunism the quickest path to honour.
Nothing weakens a political institution more than elevating convenience above character.
When defectors are celebrated without corresponding recognition for those who sustained the party through its difficult years, resentment grows, trust weakens, commitment declines, and the silent majority begins to wonder whether sacrifice still has any meaning.
Political history consistently teaches that enduring parties survive not because of those who arrive after victory, but because of those who remain faithful before, during, and after victory.
Perhaps this explains why some latter day converts in kogi state speak so casually about the leaders and members who founded, funded, defended, and nurtured the APC into the formidable political force it is today.
The APC, now Nigeria’s dominant political party, was not built by transactional politicians. It was built by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and other patriotic men and women whose loyalty could neither be purchased by temporary advantage nor weakened by temporary disappointment.
This is why leadership within the party carries not only political authority but also moral responsibility.
Party leaders, especially at the state level, must understand that reconciliation should never become substitution.
Welcoming new members strengthens a political party, but expansion should never come at the cost of erasing the sacrifices of its founding faithful.
Growth without justice breeds quiet bitterness. Inclusion without remembrance creates avoidable fractures.
A wise farmer waters newly planted trees without neglecting the old roots that have sustained the orchard through many seasons.
The APC in Kogi State should continue to welcome every sincere citizen willing to embrace its ideals. But such growth must never come at the expense of institutional memory.
Political stability rests upon justice, gratitude, and fairness. No appointment should become an instrument for rewriting history.
No defector, regardless of present influence, should imagine that a few months or years within the party can erase decades of sacrifice by those who carried its banner through seasons of uncertainty.
The future should belong not to political merchants who move wherever power appears, but to men and women whose convictions outlive changing political circumstances.
One truth remains immutable: offices are temporary, but loyalty endures.
Appointments expire; sacrifice survives. Political influence rises and falls, but the honour history bestows upon faithful servants cannot be revoked.
Those who built the APC in Kogi State from the scratch deserve justice. They deserve recognition, inclusion, and the assurance that loyalty remains a virtue rather than a political offence.
Any political party that neglects its faithful while excessively rewarding opportunism may celebrate temporary expansion, but it risks weakening the very spirit that made its victories possible.
History watches. Conscience remembers. And God, the ultimate Judge of all human affairs, is never indifferent to justice.
Musa Asiru Bakare is a foundation member of APC. I. political analyst, writes from Lokoja, Kogi State.
July 14, 2026.