?A political analyst, Dr Mohammed Saddiq, on Tuesday urged Nigerian politicians to emulate the?French crisis-free style of politics?as shown by President Nicolas Sarkozy who conceded defeat to Socialist candidate Francois Hollande in the presidential runoff election on Sunday.
Hollande won 51.62 per cent of the vote beating?Sarkozy who garnered 48.38 per cent in?the ?run-off election which gave France its first socialist head of state in 20 years.
In a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN), Saddiq?said that the maturity displayed by Sarkozy was worthy of emulation by African “sit-tight?leaders who would have contested the election outcome, bringing with it hatred, confusion and possible bloodshed''.
“An hour before the results were announced, Sarkozy knew he had lost; he immediately called Hollande and congratulated him, thereby conceding defeat.
“He also urged his supporters to respect Hollande, who he described as the choice of the people;?that is the spirit, such politics without bitterness is the best for our democracy. I think Nigerian politicians should embrace such gestures,’’ Saddiq said.
He, however, said the Socialist Party policies on Africa would not be different from those of the Conservatives, but reasoned that the Libyan revolution would have been better handled by the Socialist party.
Saddiq, who is a lecturer at the Department of Political Science, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, said Sarkozy’s influence on the Libyan war had created a huge problem? in West Africa with the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, noting that the Mali political crisis had been fuelled by the trade in arms resulting from the Libyan war.
Sarkozy, who was elected in 2007, will officially handover power to?Hollande on May 15. (NAN)