Empty Suit Syndrome

This syndrome characterizes that which is largely responsible for the failure of leadership in Africa. As Nigeria prepares for the forthcoming 2015 elections, many empty suits are already on parade,with promises  to build hospitals, roads and schools. We demand so little of our leaders so it's no surprise these empty suits use the same script every election cycle. Once they're voted back into power, the parades will be over and not even a knock on their doors will attract their attention. That's the story of our lives ladies and gentlemen; the story of the empty suits and their 'subjects'. It's little wonder that despite attempts to rebase our economy, the human development index is still very low. 

Here's a description of who an empty suit is, hopefully you'll recognise one the next time they come calling for your votes:

'An empty suit is someone puffed up with his own importance but really having little effect on the lives of others. It is often used as an insult to disparage others who really don’t deserve the title. The true empty suit, which conjures up the image of a business suit of clothing without a person, really doesn’t know what he or she is doing. He or she is ineffectual, perhaps a phony, and is about as relevant or helpful as a suit hanging on a rack. 


To call someone an empty suit implies that you think they are a complete waste of time. Editorials on politicians love to use the term empty suit to describe people seeking political office. This politician is just 'an empty suit', to quote the words of numerous political critics, and is thus undeserving of our attention. 


Some politicians deserve the title. A senator with a very poor voting record, or failure to attend senate sessions could clearly be called an empty suit because he is not really performing the job for which he was elected. On the other hand, some politicians may advertise themselves as “not just an empty suit” in order to distinguish themselves from their implied empty suit peers. 

Urban Dictionary