Respect those who gave you wings to fly. It is easy to think you have arrived and get carried away by the noise of praise singers in the Nigerian political setting, especially if you have small kunkushi to throw around when they shout your name.
If not careful, that noise will make you forget your primary reason of contesting in an election, which is to win. Because no matter the goods you have in your heart, if you don’t win your election, it will remain a pipe dream.
But to win an election you need a party with structure, which is either already existing or you roll up your sleeves and join in putting the structure in place. Structures needs to be built from polling units to wards to local government to federal representative to Senatorial district to state, geopolitical zones and federal level.
In the process of doing this ardours and sometimes unfulfilling job (because most times while you’re at it, you don’t get a thank you and nobody sees or praises your effort), a lot of people who wants to benefit from your political largess but are not willing to join you in building your party. So they tell you they are independent campaign organizations or that they will work for you codedly while remaining in their current party. And because people in these category are sweet talkers, they sweet talk you into thinking that the party that gave you a ticket to contest in the first place matters only a little.
Then few days to elections, it dawn on you that the only people who can be your agents and public canvassers are party members, that they are the ones who voted for you during party primaries
It is good to work with as many groups as you can get, but never forget the supremacy of the party. Other parties can promise you heaven and earth because an internal squabbles they claim to be having with their own candidates. Don’t neglect your own party structures cos all those squabbles could be resolved few hours to elections and everyone will return to status quo, but your party will remain with you to the end.
Yes sometimes, the actions and attitude of some people in your party can be nauseating and frustrating, but the fact is that people are the hardest to manage, but managing them is part of the learning curve. Hold your party tight, respect and love them, cos when the chips are down, they are all you have.
If you’re having a little trouble with your party, there’s still time to mend fences, make hays while the sun shines, I wish you good luck as we head for the earlier postponed elections. And if this write up is speaking directly to your situation, don’t think it is written to attack or abuse you, just sharing my own piece of mind.
Hakeem Onitiri
Political Consultant.
