Austin Orette, the Delta South Senatorial Candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has blamed Nigeria’s persistent political, economic, and governance challenges on the collapse of civic consciousness and the decline in citizen participation.

Mr Orette, in a statement on Wednesday, described corruption as merely a symptom of a deeper national crisis confronting Nigeria.

He argued that lasting national progress would only come when Nigerians stopped acting as spectators and embraced their responsibilities as active stakeholders committed to demanding accountability from elected public officials.

According to him, democracy cannot flourish where citizens neither understand government structures nor appreciate their constitutional responsibilities, leaving leaders to operate without adequate public scrutiny or meaningful civic engagement.

”Democracy is built from the ground up. It succeeds only when informed citizens actively hold every level of government accountable. Sadly, that is not the Nigeria we see today,” he added.

The politician called for greater investment in civic education, critical thinking, and democratic participation, insisting that rebuilding Nigeria requires informed citizens committed to strengthening institutions from the grassroots upward.

He lamented that many Nigerians know the president but cannot identify their councillors or state lawmakers, even though those officials make decisions that have greater influence on their everyday lives and welfare.

Mr Orette expressed concern that local government areas receive statutory allocations monthly, yet citizens rarely question expenditure, allowing public resources to be managed without sufficient transparency, accountability, or measurable developmental outcomes.

He criticised the growing culture of celebrating politicians rather than evaluating their competence, saying ethnic loyalty, religion, and political affiliation often outweighed performance when Nigerians choose their public office holders.

The politician warned that many citizens now relied on political messiahs instead of organising, questioning government decisions, and actively participating in democratic processes that could produce lasting national development and reforms.

Mr Orette also cautioned against excessive religiosity detached from civic responsibility, stressing that while faith remained important, effective governance required informed citizens, sound public policies, and active democratic participation.

”Faith is important, but faith should never replace responsible citizenship. An unhealthy culture of excessive religiosity, detached from civic responsibility, has encouraged passive acceptance instead of constructive engagement.

”A society cannot pray away problems that require informed governance, sound policies, and active citizen participation,” he said.

He described worsening insecurity across Nigeria as evidence of governance failure, noting that ordinary citizens were increasingly organising their movements around fear, while criminals appeared more confident in evading justice.

Mr Orette accused many state governments of neglecting their constitutional powers to improve electricity, infrastructure, lawful security initiatives, and economic opportunities, while concentrating resources on prestige projects that offer limited public benefits.

He particularly criticised former governors and other public officials seeking medical treatment abroad after leaving office, saying such actions exposed their failure to build functional healthcare systems during their administrations.

Mr Orette urged voters to assess candidates through competence, accountability, and measurable performance rather than ethnicity, religion, or political sentiment.

(NAN)