Issue Based Campaign! 

For the benefit of doubts, let me tell you that there is no such thing as objectivity in political support. Objective people do not take sides. They are like Benchers and are not permitted to advance any political interest. So, even as I write this, my opinion stems from my vested interest. Therefore, I am not an Activist and would not deceive you into seeing me as one for any reason.

You already know I belong to a formidable political Apostolate — I am a Soludo Apostle. Here we preach the politics of development, value reorientation and social transformation. We are not trained to be gentle in the face of attack, much as we are non-violent or terroristic our Strenght is in our result based leadership and our ability to say it as it is — no mago-mago.

Back to the subject matter. In a campaign, the issues do not go beyond two things. First, is a promissory note of what you can do (Manifesto), evidence of what you have done (Achievements), and a guarantee that you are fit for purpose (qualifications). The second is the converse of all three mentioned above. This is where you deploy your strategies, like war, against your opponent.

For us in the Soludo Apostolate, our verbal and writing prowess is clad in jovial and lethal armor. We do not take prisoners while keeping to the rules. My friend, who is also not in my Party, but quite vocal on this space, called me this morning to really express his objective review of the campaigns so far. Here are some of his key takeaways;

— Soludo has stuck to the issues. He amplifies his achievements, questions the qualifications of his opponents and points the way to his NEXT BIG steps.

— The opposition candidates on the other hand have been nothing short of theatrical. They neither question Soludo’s achievements nor his qualifications.

— What is the relationship between; “Your certificate is fake”, “You scored F9 in Maths and English” and “You have both mouth and body odour?” The first two hits on the issues that are fundamental to leadership selection, and the other simply comes across as a non-issue.

— Even in the leaked phone conversation, which the Speaker has not denied, the whole beat about fabricating slurs just to run away from the real issues would only give rise to other issues especially the type that questions your fidelity to your partner and the paternity of your children.

For the objective minded, they already know the wheat and chaffs in this entire process. Mine is to make sure that chaffs are not sold to Ndi Anambra as wheats.

— Mazi Ejimofor Opara PhD writes from Awka, Anambra State.