As the 2023 general election draws near and political tensity in the country leaves the electorates and politicians in an anticipatory mood, Stakeholders in Communications have cautioned politicians of the hazard of using offensive language and public figure attacks in the course of a campaign.
The stakeholders, who expressed dissatisfaction over attacks and killing of personalities by political thugs, urged all contestants in the forthcoming election to focus on critical issues affecting Nigeria and how they would tackle them if elected into office.
Sowore vs Obi- who is better?
Speaking on Saturday, during a webinar anchored on the theme: “Assessing the 2023 Presidential Election Campaigns”, Comrade Ina Okopi-Aqu, National Secretary of the African Action Congress (AAC) averred that the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, is not alternative Nigeria needs.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that Comrade Okopi-Aqu stated Obi was not different from the old political stock, coming from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), adding that the presidential candidate of African Action Congress (AAC), Comrade Omoyele Sowore, is a better option.
In his words: “The alternative we seek in Nigeria, if it is the PDP or Labour Party, then we do not have an alternative yet. Nigeria needs an alternative that is different from the PDP, the Labour Party and the All Progressives Congress (APC). So, we want Nigerians to look again at what is the alternative,” the AAC National Secretary said.
However, Diran Onifade, Head of Obi-Datti Media Office, who was present at the event held virtually via Zoom, countered the AAC Scribe, stressing that the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate appeals to Nigerians in terms of expectation.
Onifade argued that the Labour Party is a special purpose vehicle for the kind of leadership Nigerians have been yearning for, adding that the ideas of Mr Peter Obi and his record of service resonate with the people of Nigeria.
He said: “Nigerians have constituted themselves as the structure for the Labour Party because the ideas of our presidential candidate and his records of service resonate with Nigerians. At the beginning, it didn’t look like that. The 2023 presidential election was looking like another contest between the two big parties. That was the kind of mindset we entered the election with.
“We did not take into consideration the fact that right there among the populace there was something that was building up that politicians were not ready for. They knew about the third force. When the process of the election started, the real third force emerged from the streets of Nigeria. That is the wave we are riding on”.
Record of campaign communication in addressing core issues
President and Chairman, of the Governing Council of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Mukhtar Zubairu Sirajo, on his part, pointed out that the communication aspect of campaigns by political parties has recorded an “absolute zero” in terms of addressing core issues.
According to Sirajo, This is because political parties and campaign managers do not attach importance to communication in what they are doing as it ought to.
He opined that such happens because political parties and electoral candidates do not appoint professionals as spokespersons or communication officers because they wrongly believe that communication is an all-comers affair.
Sirajo noted that Communication is a very serious business that demands that one gets it right by being able to use it appropriately in engaging the people, especially during the political season when those seeking elective offices are constantly reaching out.
“The component of the campaigns of virtually all the political parties have in my opinion been absolutely zero. That is because the political parties and their campaign managers believe that communication is not worth giving attention as it ought to be. That is why you see political parties appointing anybody they like as their spokesperson, believing that communication is an all-comers affair,” he stated.
Presidential candidates journey to Chatham House
The NIPR President said campaign spokespersons have instead of engaging Nigerians in robust discussions about what their principals intend to do when elected, have been busy attacking the personalities of perceived political opponents.
He faulted the idea of presidential candidates going to Chatham House, London to speak about their policy plans if elected, and wondered whether their validation ought to come from Britain or the Nigerian electorate.
Speaking further, Sirajo advised electoral candidates to address the issue of how they communicate with the people.
The workshop, which was anchored by a team of communications, academics and media professionals led by Ambassador Aminu Wisdom and Professor Charles Okigbo, was hosted on the platform of Prime Business Africa, a news organisation focusing on coverage of socio-economic issues in Nigeria and the rest of Africa.
Jackson Centre for Innovative Journalism and Media Development (JCIJMD), TheNewsGuru and the New Nigeria Network also supported the project.
Nigeria has the potential to be a great economy
Aminu, in his opening remarks, said the session was to provide a better understanding of what the political parties are doing in their use of communication for the upcoming elections.
He noted that expert indicators have shown that Nigeria has the potential to be a great economy if the resources are properly deployed and managed by competent leadership.
Aminu stressed that the 2023 elections present a unique opportunity for the Nigerian people to make the right choices of managers of the country’s resources to fulfil those potentials.
Drawing a nexus between free and fair elections and communications around political campaigns and the electoral process, the popular diplomat said: “Free and fair elections are prefaced on strategic communication election campaigns. We are here today to get a better understanding of what our political parties are doing in their use of communication for the upcoming elections.”
The programme also had representatives of political parties and candidates hint at how they have fared with the pattern of communication strategies in the ongoing campaigns.
Some communication scholars who attended the colloquium identified shortcomings in the pattern of communications adopted by various political parties and candidates and how much impact the delivery of their messages to Nigerians.
They include Prof. Rotimi Olatunji, Department of Public Relations and Advertising, Lagos State University; Prof. Nuhu Gapsiso, Mass Communication Department, University of Maiduguri; and Prof. Emmanuel Dandaura, Nasarawa State University, Keffi.
Responding, Senior Special Assistant to President Buhari, Garba Shehu, who also participated in the colloquium, urged the forum of communication professionals to enlighten those working for the politicians in the communications sphere about how to effectively market political parties and candidates, especially in this era of online media.
