Presidential Poll 2023: A Battle of Wills

Campaigns for the 2023 general elections have begun, paving the way for Nigerians to elect who will govern them. In terms of popularity, the All Progressives Congress, the Labor Party and the Peoples Democratic Party are very numerous, and few people know which party will achieve it. The efforts made so far by Nigerians regarding voter registration are impressive. Those who had lost faith in the Nigerian elections have now regained hope, eager to see their votes count in 2023. Never in the history of the Nigerian electoral system has motivation reached such a fever pitch and huge numbers of voters was observed.

Undoubtedly, the emergence of Peter Obi from the Labor Party and the bitter lessons learned by Nigerians under the APC years are responsible for the unprecedented proliferation of voters. It is a fact that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu of APC and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar of PDP wield enormous influence when it comes to politics and politics in Nigeria. Similarly, when one considers the ideology of Peter Obi and the regiment of converts he won, one does not minimize a possible victory for the party. The 2023 presidential election is complex in nature and a battle of wills in which the will of the masses will be brazenly overthrown. The electorate, unfortunately, will contribute to subversion.

Games will win and lose as long as they have wands and undergarments. Thus, the claims of victory propagated by each party should not be translated into victory, because politics in Nigeria is as unpredictable a game as the Nigerian electorate. The only predictable phenomenon in the Nigerian electoral system is rigging. For any of the three sides to succeed in the battle, it would have to engage in an intense debate on how it will tackle Nigeria's problems. This is to avoid a repeat of the APC government, which despite having started well in 2015, has floundered desperately, causing people to lose faith in the government as its term slowly draws to an end. Let's examine the position of the parties.

The APC has an intimidating structure; surplus funds; a 422-man campaign committee (which still counts), headed by a sitting president; a committee with over 940 women led by the First Lady of Nigeria. The arrangement will give the party a definite advantage as it has been deliberately crafted to respond to the growing fame of the LP and any likely threat from the PDP. But can the APC's years of bad governance be erased from the memory of Nigerians in just four months? Moreover, how are relatives of those killed by terrorists in Nigeria so likely to vote for the same APC in 2023? Will his desperate choice of a Muslim-Muslim ticket, which does not inspire many Nigerians, attract votes from non-Muslims? Can INEC and the judiciary vouch under the supervision of the APC? Can the experts predict what will follow if the APC government removes the fuel subsidy next year? These are facts to be dealt with frankly.

The LP is waging its battle on social media, and it is delivering results. Obi and his vice president, Datti, visited different parts of Nigeria, promising a better deal. LP supporters are overwhelmingly young people, the largest percentage of the Nigerian population. Christians, craftsmen, traders and young Igbo people find hope in the LP. The living Igbo victims and witnesses of the civil war will see their tears stifled by Obi and the agitators for the sovereign Igbo nation to regain freedom. For a long time, the Igbos patiently waited for the presidency.

However, the party will face the challenge posed by the electoral strength of the North, although we agree that the population of the North is not a threat. To some extent, its political architecture has taken a different look: Governor Ganduje of Kano State has seen his influence wane; the young people of the North flee the carnage of the North while the foreigners arrive; there will be split votes due to the emergence of Atiku, Shettima and Datti who are northerners. Despite the change, the LP has a big battle on hand, because when the population and states of "Igbo", South-South, "Yoruba", and the Niger Delta are added together, they are behind the North. Also, Anambra State was not a paradise when Obi was the governor. Obi needs substantial votes from North and South, and God will save Obi from "inconclusive results" next year.

The PDP relies on Atiku's experience, strong structure, deep pockets and popularity to win the 2023 elections. That people want the party back in power is not surprising. Atiku wouldn't have been in the running if the ticket hadn't been opened and Wike, if he had won the ticket, isn't that popular with northerners to become president unless Atiku and his allies did. support him. You might call Wike a troublemaker, but you can't ignore him as a resuscitator, game changer, and lover of justice. Equity, otherwise known as fairness, is a social reality that leads to the existence...