Elections 2007: Difficulties before the Opposition 

In a matter of weeks, the 2007 elections must have been conducted and announced. This is indeed, to sound very optimistic and patriotic. It also means that one has chosen to ignore or reject the rumors of the day--that the third term or tenure elongation plans are not over after all. 

Come what may, Nigerians wish and want the elections to hold, the opposition waits for it eagerly, probably to prove a point this time around. In all, the party to beat is the PDP, which the likes of Ojo Mmaduekwe keep calling the biggest party in Africa, but which Nigerians, on the other hand, have pseudonymed to mean--People deceiving People, Poverty Development Party, Papa Deceive Pikin ,Power Drunk People, the list is endless. 

The opposition remains the likes of AC, ANPP, ADC, PPA, Labor Party, APGA, and so many other unknown political parties. The tough-talking and threat-spewing Atiku Abubakar, Nigerian’s VP and ex-PDP great insider appears to be the face of the opposition. For them, it’s a time of great re-strategizing--marshalling out plans to wrestle power from the incumbent and getting prepared for the battle for the survival of their existence. 

The battle is indeed, a great one. PDP is a formidable enemy--taking power away from them shouldn’t be without a big price. The opposition knows this. And taking into cognizance on how elections are won or lost in Nigeria, one wonders if the opposition can emerge victorious at the end of the day, if at all they will make any significant impact. 

The oppositions on their own have enormous difficulties and challenges before them. We are yet to see their people’s oriented programs and weigh the marketability of their candidates. They have also not realized the importance of forging a common front against the incumbent. More to this, are the multi-faceted problems that have come to be synonymous with elections made in Nigeria. They must put all these into consideration, in order to make an impact on the speedily approaching April polls. 

At the moment, we have not seen a sound and solid opposition--in terms of what they intend to achieve in office and how to do it. Surely, their manifestos might look wonderful, but the Nigeria masses are tired of such political pranks. We are tired of promises that are empty and hollow, promises that deceive and never be. Nigerians want the opposition to talk more on the improvement of the health care system, infrastructural development, investment on the human knowledge, wealth generation and job creation. 

The opposition has not repositioned itself to be seen in such light; instead we see an opposition that is full of desperados and similar to the PDP in tactics and approach. We need an opposition that will uphold service to the nation as their watchword. 
 

Currently, the opposition is seen as a house divided against itself. Unfortunately, they have not been able to present a common front to their enemy--we keep hearing of cross-carpeting and defections. Nobody wants to be left out; everybody wants to be heard, to be seen as a contestant and not as a party promoter or supporter. Thus, they lack the will to unite and be coherent in actions, the will to make reasonable compromises and form a strong alliance. Dishearteningly, this is the biggest problem that faces the opposition on the April elections. 

Next, is the acceptability of their candidates? The opposition with all due respect doesn’t parade the best of candidates. We still see people of questionable characters and stained integrities as office seekers and with the exceptions of few candidates, most are disgruntled ex-PDP members who are more interested in the spoils of office than service to the people. 

An alliance would have brought forward the best of candidates in the opposition. For example, many Nigerians have spoken well of the Pat Utomi´s presidential candidacy. He would have lent more credence to the opposition struggle, if they have formed an alliance with Utomi as their candidate. It might not mean an outright win, but Utomi’s candidacy firmly supported by the allied opposition would have been well received by the people and also send strong signals to the PDP. 

Another point worth considering is the popularity test/factor. It is discouraging that the opposition seems to concentrate only in the bigger cities and towns; they should begin to see Nigeria in a bigger perspective than this. It would be vital for them to broaden and spread their activities and campaigns to all the remote circles and squares of the Nigeria society. The people in the villages, the grassroots representatives must be able to identify their flags, sing their anthems and chant their slogans. We have had instances in the past, where voters failed to identify the political parties of their choice candidates. The opponents should strive to prevent similar occurrence this time. 

In addition, how does the opposition wants to battle the unreliability of INEC, constant threats from government agencies like the EFCC, election manipulations plus rigging and other behind-the-scene illegalities that often determine who wins or loses election in Nigeria? 

This is truly a perilous time for the opposition, as they fight for their voice to be heard in Nigeria politics. The April polls are fast approaching; time as always has become very expensive. And it’s paramount to make quality use of the little time left. 

For them, this should be a time for re-engineering and development of mechanisms to counter the stiff resistance, which the PDP will definitely pose. It should also be a moment for correction of mistakes already made, a time to take the campaigns to the grassroots levels, create programs that are people oriented and more so, give the voters cogent reasons on why they should be voted for. 

Chukwudi Okeke writes from Gothenburg, SWEDEN 

Robot  # 1 | 22.03.2007 04:20

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