General elections are definitely one of the most eventful and decisive moments of any country’s political history. It is 2011. That means Nigerian is either having a new president or retaining the incumbent president. This article will try not to question any aspirant competency or credibility. We shall leave that for another day. What I will try to achieve with this is raise the questions Nigerians should be asking. It is time we stopped playing ignorant. At this point in any civil society (election period) there are always hot topics every aspirant love to discuss to his/her best ability to score point and increase acceptance from the electorate. In Nigeria there are tons of hot topics. Education, Security, job creation and the economy are the most prominent topics. Recently, the wages and salaries of law makers joined that list. I wonder why our politicians are not talking to us about issues like these.
It is not uncommon in Nigeria for politicians to list 7 point agenda or 5 point agenda during this period. However, they never tell us how to achieve these self imposed goals. Many of them make plans and promises as if it only takes a magic spell to turn things around. Unfortunately the Nigerian system is not like Hogwarts. In matured democracy, aspirants aim for reasonable tasks that are achievable within the time frame of the first term in office. This is necessary because public service is a job. If they do not deliver, a second term is not guaranteed. They get sacked by the people; the employer.
Political parties would conclude party primaries in the next few weeks. Afterwards Nigerians would finally know those who are definitely vying for the topmost political office in the country. Unfortunately our political system and the media (no outfit in particular) make internal party politics national matters. The few weeks before the election, (which is unarguable not enough, topic for another day) the contenders would persuade us. I urge Nigerians not to lose concentration. Eyes on the price my people!
After the primaries phase am using this medium to ask and plead to credible platforms to conduct in dept interview about plans and project by each candidate. 2011 is a major year in our history. We have all heard that a million times over. But it can be over emphasized. Candidates should not just hide behind their political platforms. They should thrive to make a name for themselves. Nigerians are not just waiting to vote for a party! Let us ask questions when the time comes. I know our democracy might still be young for live debate between candidates but the idea shouldn’t be dumped in the trash. Each candidate should/ could have a live broadcast of plans and projects.
These broadcasts are just not the “I will do that and that” rhetoric we hear all the time. We are asking for a type of broadcast that would tell us the plans and the means of accomplishing them. Nigerians need to be able to hold our politicians to concrete promises. This is the standard we can test them by. A concrete self imposed standard. We have to beat them.
Our people have a saying he that asks for direction doesn’t take a wrong turn. Nigerians let us ask these folks real questions. Let us ask them their plans for us as we head into this new decade. Let us ask them why Nigerians should not lose hope in training their kids in their schools. Let us ask them why they go for medical checkups abroad and leave the taxpayers to our dwindling health system. Nigerians let us get to work. Ask a question.
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