The topmost contestants—Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) and Engineer Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP)—have always been either collapsing into one another to form a force for the purpose of contest or competing among themselves for political power. Examples: Atiku was the presidential candidate of the defunct Action Congress (AC) in 2007 when Tinubu was the Governor of Lagos State elected on the party’s platform, same Atiku was a presidential aspirant in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2011 when Kwankwaso was re-elected as the Governor of Kano State on the party’s platform, the three of them were the biggest of the APC’s stalwarts who ensured the emergence of Muhammadu Buhari as the country’s president, while Obi was Atiku’s presidential running mate on PDP’s platform in 2019. Who, therefore, is not who?
It is now in 2023 that each one of them is independent of another in the contest for the office of the president of Nigeria as a result of which a separate analysis on each as individual candidate has already been developed. Right from the beginning of the contest, each had tried to advertise himself as the best presidential material that had ever been in the market for which every Nigerian should, therefore, have preference.
All these four aspirants are diverse expressions of varying sentiments and defining realities that have been the issues of tremendous concern to the various communities and sections of the country and which have appeared to be the foundations of the campaigns for power. There were some unique issues to which each one of them was rightly or wrongly associated during the campaigns and on the basis of which some opinions were formed.
The spread of the candidates across religious faiths, ethnicities and geo-political entities was a true reflection of the heterogeneity of the country and therefore a test of the people’s wish and capacity for the accommodation of one another. It was a process that brought out the degree of the commitment of the citizens to the execution of the ‘Nigeria Project’, which is all about a collaborative approach to the issues of peace and development in the country.
Although all those divisions amongst the citizens have always been there, their magnitudes tremendously increased during the presidential campaigns to the extent that they became real threats to the corporate existence of the country. Religious, ethnic and sectional identities were, for a lot of people, weapons that were used against the ‘other people’, thereby turning mere political campaigns into a show of unbridled hostility.
In other words, a lot of fault lines in the country and vulnerabilities of the various communities manifested more boldly during the campaigns as a result of which fear became dominant and most apparent among the people. The numerous options that were provided for Nigerians to make an informed choice of a president from among the various contestants became clear sources of fear that lingered throughout the campaign period.
All these hostilities might have only subsided now after Tinubu clinched victory during the presidential election that took place last Saturday, but they are not likely to fizzle out anytime soon. The conclusion of the election and the subsequent emergence of a winner which has now marked the end of the struggle for power must have unsurprisingly reduced the tension in the land.
Yet, the challenging issues of national unity and development will continue to dominate the political and governance spheres as well as consequently serve as a basis of the assessment of the performance of the government. There is already the expectation that unity among the diverse and, in some cases, feuding communities as well as the genuine development of Nigeria will form the most significant part of Tinubu’s governance agenda.
Happily, while on campaigns and in his acceptance speech, the president-elect made a vow to tackle all those disturbing issues over which expressions of disenchantment are consistently being made by most Nigerians. In a typical manner of a highly experienced politician, Tinubu as a contestant made pledges that appealed to citizens who are desirous of better treatment by the government and now as an election winner made strong commitment that have indicated a readiness for the kind of service delivery that will guarantee the realization of fundamental objectives.
By saying, in the acceptance speech, that he would be “in tune with your aspirations, charge up your energies and harness your talents to deliver a nation that we can be proud of”, the president-elect has strengthened the confidence of Nigerians that he will galvanize the human and other potentials in the country for the good of all. The particular appeal he made to the losers whom he described as his brothers for co-operation as, according to him, “political competition must now give way to political conciliation and inclusive governance” is an indication of his magnanimity and the resultant readiness to seek their contributions towards the management of national affairs.
He, additionally, appears to have attached utmost value to the people’s support, which has now translated into his victory and is therefore most likely to justify such a confidence. It is even such a consideration that made him to tell Nigerian voters that “you have given me the greatest honour you can bestow on one man”.
Tinubu’s victory is increasingly being celebrated across the parts of the country mainly because of the belief that it will give birth to the political stability that is required for the conceptualization and implementation of policies for national development. The combination of the shift of power to the South as legitimately and persistently desired by the people of the area, his well-acknowledged political and governance expertise as well as the open readiness of most Nigerians to continue to maximally support him constitutes a source of strong hope for a much better Nigeria.
These are facts that have readily constituted the basis of the valid expectation that Tinubu will surmount most of the challenges that continuously seek to cripple the country. The various submissions on the nature and scopes of the problems as well prescriptions by the citizens are, more or less, a proposed agenda for the president-elect.
Definitely there are some heavy loads of harsh policies that have been the cause of some of the attacks on the present government with which he must have to contend. It is the speed and effectiveness with which he initiates the reversal or modification of such policies with a view to making them practically pro-people that will show the extent of his sincerity and determination to succeed.
