Gov El Rufai’s argument is a sound one. It’s difficult to disagree with its premises and conclusion.

For me, what you have done is deepen the conversation — about the fact that it’s not really about good people going in individually to attempt to change the system, as they’ll get choked and submit in the end.

Stalemate?

Well, yes! — a lose-lose stalemate.

Africa is bad because it has bad politicians.

'Good' politicians who try to engage the system get choked, turn to ‘bad' politicians so Africa remains bad.

So, let’s all stay where we are, outsiders on the outside and insiders in the inside. … but Africa still remains bad.

I don’t like this kind of stalemate. Of what purpose is the movement of a danfo in Lagos whose driver keeps moving forward and backward pretending to be leaving the park — the driver won’t leave the park unless he sees passengers, the passengers won’t enter the bus unless the bus is filled and ready to move.

A third force is definitely needed. There’s no changing the system from outside (at least in Nigeria’s case for now). Getting a critic to join government is definitely not the solution.

A people ( whether critics or not) bound by an ideology and an undying vision, armed with tact and strategy and extreme patience MUST find the need to come together infiltrating the space first through the parliament with an agenda of radical reform of the laws of this nation, consolidating power on that platform and then seizing executive power and laying the foundation for development.

Nigeria today is a tragic opposite of Nigeria 20 years ago. The trend says Nigeria in twenty years time will be far worse. A stalemate doesn’t just cut it.

And by then, the argument for the primacy of politics will be comprehensible apriori