Towards Issue-based Campaigns (3)

By Emmanuel Oladesu

Since it is evident that opposition parties are not even ready for the campaigns beyond Abubakar Atiku’s propaganda about President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s age, name arrangements and other personal documents, and Peter Obi’s copy cat approach of mimicking the Wazirin’s steps with some modifications, Nigerians expect convincing and persuasive alternative blueprints in this electioneering in vain.

The opposition is not innovation by bringing to the front burner mundane issues that do not resonate with the electorate and gossips that will fade away before the elections. For example,

Atiku said an imaginary 90 year old Tinubu should not be in power beyond next year. Does that not suggest that the leading opposition figure is running out of ideas?

Unlike the ruling party that can boast of elaborate campaign structures across the states, opposition parties are yet to get to the drawing board.

The campaign period has started. It will end in January. But feelers suggest that the real serious manoeuvring and canvassing would take place within the three months – October, November and December, leading to more aggressive and anxious evaluation of strategies in the first and second weeks of January, next year.

During the period, what opposition parties may likely opt for is the assessment of the score card of the Tinubu administration, which cannot be disputed, and in the absence of clear programmes, they may hire spin doctors to invent other methods of manipulating public opinion.

Four issues may be brought to the front burner – household inflation, petrol price, electricity supply and security. The Federal Government and the campaign organisations of the president have adequate answers, based on the performance of the administration in these sectors.

In addition, the Federal Government and the campaign structures are expected to direct attention to the giant strides in agriculture, which are under-reported in the media; the feat in the education sector, particularly the NELFUND success story, and the restoration of a conducive atmosphere in the ivory towers that are now devoid of strikes; the revolution in the interior, health, aviation, solid minerals and defence sectors.

The opposition can no more use economic indicators for a campaign of calmuny. Quoting the National Bureau of Statistics, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday at ‘Freedom Online Lecture’ drew attention to 4. 43 percent growth, with agriculture growing by 4.39 percent. Also, the service sector grew by 4.6 percent and external reserves stood at 53 billion dollars last week. Even, the Central Bank reported that Nigerians abroad sent home 947 million dollars through formal channels in July.

Neither can the opposition allude to insecurity to achieve a cheap point. The Tinubu administration is unrelenting in vigorously fighting the anti-terror war. In acknowledgement, President Donald Trump said he now stands with President Tinubu in his fight against terrorists.

The president has increased the Army divisions from eight to 12, with 28,000 additional personnel being recruited. Insecurity has persisted nevertheless in a particular region ofthecountry, but it is not due to lack of serious effort to tackle it by government. Forest Guards and Mining Marshals are now effective to rid the bad people of the ungovern areas. State police is underway.

It is easy for Nigerians to forget that once upon a time in Nigeria, almost 20 states could not pay salaries. Critical infrastructure also suffered. Under the current administration, these have become a thing of the past. The 36 governors are therefore, taken aback by the proposal by Atiku to restore fuel subsidy and deny the states of resources to meet their responsibilities and obligations to the people.

Instead of proposing the return of subsidy, the governors should be put on their toes to ensure prudent spending and accountability.

During the campaigns, attention would also be on the multiple calls for the probes that may lead voters to nowhere. Atiku started it by asking a foreign organisation to probe President Tinubu, a move being over-projected by a section of the biased media. However, the calls are not lopsided.

Only during electioneering is the distraction apposite.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), according to a former federal lawmaker, Ehiozuwa Agbonayinma, has 14 days to reopen and prosecute historical financial crime investigations involving the former vice president, based on the petition for the revival of the September 2006 report that alleged grand corruption and money laundering against Atiku while he was in office.

Agbonayinma has warned that legal action will follow if EFCC fails to act within the two-week window. He is refreshing the memory of Nigerians about how the EFCC and an administrative panel accused Atiku of mismanaging the Petroleum Technology Development Fund. In the past, Atiku challenged these indictments in court, arguing that he was denied a fair hearing.

Instructively, EFCC prosecuted Atiku’s lawyer, Uyiekpen Giwa-Osagie, over a $2 million cash transaction during the 2019 elections. A Federal High Court later ruled that the EFCC failed to prove the funds were illegal. However, a human rights group, HEDA, has urged the EFCC to investigate claims that Atiku used special-purpose vehicles and companies like Marine Float to divert public funds.

With all these distractive and futile probes, local and international, leading to nowhere, the ruling and opposition parties may shift full scale attention to the substance of the campaigns and elevate issues over personalities.

Yet, while the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) seems to be more prepared, but seem to fear the anticipated or consequential weariness that a long period of campaign may bring, the two leading opposition parties – Atiku’s African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) loaned to Obi by the former countryman governor of Bayelsa, National Leader Senator Seriake Dickson, may, banking on the substitution window, only indulge in side-campaigns in anticipation of the outcome of their testy coalition talks and obvious fruitless search for a single presidential candidate.

Other critical issues that shaped the 2023 presidential election will resurface, despite efforts to downplay them. A core issue is rotation, and the question subsists: after the eight years, or constitutional two terms of President Muhammadu Buhari from the North, is President Tinubu from the South not entitled to mandate renewal for another four years?

Is the opposition against second term for President Tinubu by Atiku not an affront on the principle of equity, fairness, inclusiveness and justice?

The political class should know by now that zoning and rotation, by sheer convention, are big issues, unless the existence of the geo-political zones is denied. Any attempt to brush it aside would ignite controversy, with cries of marginalisation, exclusion, domination and oppression filling the air.

To many observers, 2027 poll is a referendum on the performance of the president. One of the achievements being tackled by Atiku is NELFUND, which according to statistics, has benefitted more northern youths. The former vice president said he would elevate the loans to grants. But he never initially thought about the initiative he has now promised to review in the first place because, as the owner of an expensive private university, he may not be masses-oriented. It is sheer populism.

NELFUND is targeted at indigent students at the risk of becoming dropouts. The rich in the society may not feel its impact. But to the beneficiaries, Tinubu administration is a government that cares.

What Nigerians expect from opposition leaders are their promises on education, especially the aspect of cost sharing; health, particularly the establishment of more General Hospitals and primary health centres; massive infrastructural development instead of attacking government over the Lagos/Calabar Coastal Ways; security, particularly what they can do to end terror, banditry and kidnapping as soon as possible; economy, especially how they can attract investment, create jobs and assist businesses to grow.

NOTE: Views expressed by contributors are strictly personal and not of the Spynews