Nigeria: Elections - Is Anyone Talking to the Masses?

Fahamu (Oxford)

31 March 2011

Nigeria: Elections - Is Anyone Talking to the Masses?

opinion

The start of the 2011 Nigerian elections is just two weeks away and like kids in the playground, arguments over the presidential debates continue. The incumbent, Goodluck Jonathan has refused to debate other candidates in the 'What About Us', organised by broadcaster NN24 on DSTV. Three other candidates have chosen to boycott Jonathan's debate under the Nigerian Election Debate Group (NEDG). Jonathan may regret not participating but Method is Madness (Saratu Abiola) was left 'cold' by the exclusion of the masses in the debate. But aren't all debates like that? Nonetheless the 'them' of Nigeria are THE voters, not the 'good English', Blackberry carrying, London for summer crowd...

'Let it be known that there are less of the yuppy Nigerians trooping to Victoria Island than there are them. Yes, them. Those people who weren't there in the debate. Those people who are likelier to own a radio than a TV. Those people who were probably on their okadas looking for passengers during the debate, hawking food or recharge cards, selling tomatoes in the market. Those people whose vote is up for resale because they don't see the difference in the candidates, and are so disillusioned because they don't have the same sense of urgency for their stomachs as they do for the country.

'Those are the people politicians go to, after all, when they want votes, not us. With our Twitter and Blackberries, our Bella Naija and our good English and trips to London for summer. And I'm not even saying I blame these people. I'm just saying that we do not have the humility to see the smallness of our number. I'm saying that, if we did, we would have had a debate beamed from a market somewhere, with the head marketwoman or Iyaloja moderating, with translators for the Hausa or Igbo presidential candidate.'