Nigerian politician Alex Ikwechegh has sparked outrage after he was caught on video punching and verbally abusing a taxi driver who delivered food to his home.
“Do you know who I am?… I can make you disappear in this entire country and nothing will happen,” Ikwechegh said in the video that went viral.
The altercation apparently started after the driver asked Ikwechegh to go outside to pick up the food, instead of him bringing it inside.
Shocked Nigerians shared the clip widely, forcing Ikwechegh, a member of the opposition All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), which represents the southeastern city of Aba in the House of Representatives, to issue a formal apology – a stark contrast to his arrogant and intimidating tone in the video.
Unfortunately, it is common in Nigeria for officials and other “big men” to use their power to intimidate ordinary citizens with the well-known phrase, “Do you know who I am?” – a reminder of the untouchable status they believe they have.
Politicians, including many MPs, often also intimidate the public by traveling in large convoys, with police escorts and blaring sirens.
Their convoys are given priority over regular traffic, with security officers sometimes reacting aggressively to anyone who does not make room for them.
But this latest case is especially disappointing because Ikwechegh, at 42, is part of a younger generation of politicians.
The ‘Not Too Young to Run’ campaign was started a few years ago by civil society organizations to encourage more youth to get involved in Nigerian politics.
With 70% of the country’s population under the age of 35, the initiative aimed to lower the age limits for candidacy, allowing younger Nigerians to bring new ideas and a fresh approach to leadership.
In 2018, it managed to lower the minimum age for several positions and increase the number of young candidates from 6% to 27% in just one year.
The age to run for the House of Representatives – the lower house of parliament – was lowered from 30 to 25, the Senate and governorship from 35 to 30, and the presidency from 40 to 30.
With Nigeria’s average age only 18, many hoped that younger leaders would break the old patterns of oppression and equality.
But Ikwechegh’s actions exhibit some of the same old behavior that many young Nigerians had hoped would be left behind.
Unfortunately, his case is not unique. Two years ago, Nigeria’s then-youngest senator, Elisha Abbo, who was 41 at the time, was filmed punching a shop assistant after accusing her of “insulting” him.
He threatened her with arrest and even called in a police officer to carry out the case.
The incident was caught on camera and eventually led to Abbo, who is no longer a senator after losing last year’s elections, to apologize. But it showed how deeply rooted this culture of abuse of power is.
All this has led many Nigerians to wonder whether younger leaders are falling into the same pitfalls as the older generation.
The situation takes me back to my boarding school days, where senior students regularly bullied juniors.
As juniors, my classmates and I eagerly talked about what we would do when it was our turn to become seniors, imagining the punishments we would inflict on those younger than us.
It felt like a right, something to look forward to – a small comfort amid the rigors of being a junior – that one day we would be the ones with the power, and not the ones on the receiving end.
But by the time we reached senior year, the school introduced new rules against bullying, and we felt deprived.
We had waited our turn, and now that right was taken away. The school stuck with the new rules, although many seniors still found ways around them.
It feels like the same cycle is happening nationally.
When a 42-year-old politician, active on social media, can punch a taxi driver – three times – on camera without thinking, it forces us to wonder whether the younger generation of politicians is simply waiting to inherit, rather than break . , the cycle of privilege, whether they really want a fresh start or are simply waiting for their turn to wield power without restraint.
Nigeria’s House of Representatives has referred Ikwechegh to the Ethics and Privileges Committee after he was accused of trying to bring the committee into disrepute.
He has also been arraigned in court on charges of “threats, assault and abuse of public office”.
His behavior is a sobering reminder that justice and impunity may be more deeply entrenched in Nigerian culture than generational change alone can solve.
Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani is a Nigerian journalist and novelist based in Abuja and London.
More Nigeria stories from the BBC:
Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.
Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfricaon Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at BBCAfrica
