Unfortunately, many citizens including self acclaimed educated people, some badly oriented media practitioners and many kurukere religious merchants have been wrongly wired to believe that only Janduku politicians (moral wrecks), money bags, unscrupulous political godfathers and their godsons can win elections or should go into politics at all. They create their own odious reality and call it people’s “political reality” which they help to promote and consolidate because they see politics as merchandise business of making maximum profit by promoting status quo rogue politics where people don’t count at all in the process of selecting their leaders in a free, fair, not violent election.
I remember my first visit to Ipokia to receive new members and some AD or AC & PDP decampees to the Gani Fawehinmi led National Conscience Party as Ogun state chairman of NCP.. About 6 of us came in 2 cars from Abeokuta – Ilaro to attend the ceremony of around 200 people well seated in an open field. I was to discuss on the ideology & the 10 care programmes of NCP , our presidential candidate’s integrity, service and sacrifice to the society and the need to build a credible alternative to the rotten bourgeoise parties..
The first thing observable was some of their leaders’ surprise that we came without any “feferity” of siren blowing police escorts and the razzmatazz of their state chairman not being chocked in the middle of stern looking, red eyed political thugs as bodyguards which they had been used to. The funniest part was when I was invited to greet & speak to the audience, I overheard a bearded man who whispered to himself something like “se chairman wa ko rowo ra agbada ni, se bi chairman ni a pe” – Why did our chairman not wearing Agbada or he can’t afford it, after all, he’s the state chairman? I smiled. I put on kampala buba & Sokoto o. Agbada that I had not put on for many years.
I appropriately addressed all their opinions, questions & whispers too, with loud ovation from the audience. I latter learnt the man was a retired school principal during our interaction with the town’s political leaders. After the session, he was everywhere on me with adulation for my speech. He even offered to entertain us but unfortunately we had no time. He and others passionately appealed to us to bring Chief Gani Fawehinmi to Ipokia to campaign. Gani eventually came to the town to campaign, and that was one of our best outings with Gani. The community brought out their Egungun and other traditional entertainers to welcome us with remarkable crowd.
Election results? We lost because according to our party leaders, they were intimidated by security agencies, some traditional chiefs and many of the party’s star leaders were chased out of the town on the evil of the election. Some ended sleeping in the forest to avoid being killed by known & unknown gunmen shooting & searching for them for dare to bring a “strange party” to Ipokia. “Awon Omo Egbe Gani da…?” Even with our little political strength as they claimed, we can’t still be tolerated.
We issued a press release of our members bad experience . None of the major print & broadcast news media including NTA, Abeokuta, OGTV & OGBC “carried it”. Well may be it’s because to many editors, (not always reporters are compromised,) election time is always business time for personal pockets and or for political adverts patronage.
This is what “awon Arabi” unscrupulous politicians and their Abobakus in bourgeoisie political parties call, “winning formula” and “strategies” . Without inducement, vote buying, rigging, security agencies compromise, political thuggery, intimidation, maiming and killings, the bitter truth is that most conventional politicians & their parties have no real social base.,
Adeola Soetan
08037207856
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