BEFORE YOU CAST THAT VOTE

  

Image: Nigeriacamera.net

 The Nigerian Presidential election is here. Nigerians will stroll out in their hordes to change the course of their country. In a way, there’s no greater power than that. It’s rightly said that to whom much is given, much is expected. To every Nigerian wielding a PVC sword, much is expected of you.

    Let’s look at the reasons you shouldn’t think of before you strike your blow;

TRIBE:  please take the tribe of the contestant out of it. Tribalism has been one of the biggest issues Nigeria has ever had and still has. You owe your allegiance to a country and not a tribe. Nigeria is a country, not a tribe. Don’t vote for a candidate because he or she is from your part of the country.

LANGUAGE:  Naturally tribe leads me into language. There’s nothing sweeter than hearing someone address you in a language you call yours, be it English or some native tribe. You feel like they’re family.

RELIGION:  Another cankerworm that won’t leave this country alone. Religion has destroyed our nation a lot. You’ll be doing the wrong thing if you decide to vote a candidate because you like his religion and it’s the same as yours. Religion sincerely doesn’t influence a man’s character. We all know that even though we love to ignore the truth about religion and what people in it do.

AGE:  Age is really nothing but a number. That someone is young doesn’t mean they have anything to offer you, that they’re old, same thing. One’s age, really doesn’t show what one has to offer you. Capability and character has nothing to do with age. After Independence, our leaders were young and did no better. A good person isn't determined by age.

POLITICAL PARTY:  I like umbrella! I like broom! Please, before you decide that you like one political party or the other and want to vote for their candidate, do check their track record. What have they offered in all the states they were present in? What kind of development did they effectuate? Forget who and who are in the party that you don’t like but what the party can offer because sincerely any candidate you put in has a party behind him, checking(dictating) his moves.
  Unfortunately, just like the US, Nigeria is a two party system nationwide. Only two political parties campaigned all over the country. So, for the presidential elections, let's be realistic, it is one of the two major parties. Most Nigerians outside Lagos, Abuja and other major cities don't know the other presidential candidates.

EDUCATION: Education we all know doesn’t mean one is educated and learned. There are some qualities going to school doesn’t give you. The level of their education shouldn’t matter.

 THE VPS, WIVES, ADVISERS AND PEOPLE AROUND THEM: try and investigate the characters of the individuals around them. Who gives them advise, who do they listen to? A man or woman doesn’t rule alone.

   After the elections and your candidate doesn’t win and you decide to go on a rampage, kill people, injure them, and destroy properties of the supposed members of the opposition, SHAME ON YOU!!! You’ll be a total disgrace to Nigeria, your children; born and unborn. The candidates you’d be causing mayhem for won’t come and join you in doing it. They’d even disassociate themselves from you. THEY DON'T KNOW YOU.

   There’s one thing you should know about this coming elections; IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU!!! This election is about Nigeria, a country and not an individual, a group of individuals or a party.

   Questions you should ask yourself are; what does Nigeria need? What are the problems killing Nigeria and who can bring a faster solution to those problems?

   The most important questions of all are; What Nigeria do I want my children and children unborn to grow up in? How will my decision of a candidate affect this country? Where does Nigeria deserve to be in the next four years?

   A peaceful election depends on YOU. A peaceful post election also depends on YOU. If your candidate doesn’t win, be a patriotic Nigerian and don’t destroy Nigeria for your selfish reasons or theirs.

   As a Nigerian, it is your right, civic duty and responsibility to vote but more importantly it is your patriotic duty to weigh seriously the decision of who to vote before you cast that vote.

BE PRO-NIGERIAN!!!

Thank you for reading my thoughts. What are yours?