In just a few days, Nigerians will troop out to elect a new president and new legislators. It is a consequential election as many have observed. It is an election that will prove that Nigerians want progress or the same old and failed policies that got the country to the present sorry state of having 133 million people in multidimensional poverty.
Among the four front line contenders, there has not been a clearer picture of what will be the outcome of the election.
As Nigerians make their choices, sometimes guided by their immediate benefit of paltry sum with the primordial ethno-religious sentiments, it is a situation of an unsure outcome.
There is yet strong hope that Nigerians through the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, will win.
Atiku Abubakar, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate and Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have been attacking each other and taking each other to court seeking disqualification.
Their action is an eye opener. While Atiku accused Tinubu of being a drug lord, Tinubu has accused Atiku of money laundering. Between the two, if they succeed, there may be a reincarnation of the corruption and failure of the past 8 years under the Buhari administration.
As these continue, Tinubu has been trying to present himself as the victim of Buhari’s administrative high handedness and policies. But, Tinubu is not the victim. Rather, Nigerians are. His outbursts aim at getting sympathy from the people. It is a manipulation of the people to stir emotions to his favour. It is important that the people are aware of these machinations.
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With all the drama, Nigerians hoping to start getting it right with their leadership should be careful with their choices.
Not only are Nigerians in a fix for the outcome of the election, they are faced with the crisis of cash swap, no electricity and long queues at the filling stations. Getting cash has become herculean.
Could the Buhari administration be gearing towards a social chaos that may affect the election? Will this cash swap chaos stop the election or affect the outcome? One may say that Nigerians are not new to such chaotic implementation of a policy such as this. It is a good reason not to reward the established parties for the poor handling and management of Nigeria since the return of democracy.
Buhari’s administration is ramming through policies that have resulted in chaos thereby aiming to crush the chances of his party in the elections. This, Tinubu thinks, is aimed at him.
APC in the last 8 years has plunged the country to hardships while the PDP looked away. If the PDP provided strong opposition to the policies and actions of the APC, probably some policies may not be enacted. Probably, Nigeria will not fail to the level it is. They aim to simply take power. The low energy opposition can be interpreted as politics of partners playing Nigerians with an illusion of difference. Tinubu’s gaffe of PDAPC, indicates clearly they are operating in unison to keep Nigeria down.
For those who want a break from the established status quo, there are enough reasons that will help them in making their choice. Otherwise, Nigeria will remain with the same old figures with no new ideas to make the country work for all. But remember, the choice of a money launderer or a drug lord signifies the route the country will take.
Be wise and make the right choice.