Celebrity Endorsments and Politics

Some days back, a video titled "Nollywood for Johnathan" was released on YouTube, the video had what i'd like to consider our "National Jewels" Olu Jacobs, Genevieve Nnaji, Ramsey Noah, Stephanie Okereke, Desmond Elliott, Monalisa Chinda & Ini Edo. These people are the heavyweights of Nollywood, so much so that the video didn't need to introduce them. There has been some uproar regarding the ethics of public figures endorsing candidates in a campaign, i'd like to put out an opinion that i see lacking out there. So lets talk shall we... I'll talk you listen. Yeah!

A political campaign is an organized effort which seeks to influence the decision making process within a specific group. The core purpose of a political campaign is to influence decision making, notice the word influence, not actually make the decision for you. As i read the comments, tweets, and FB posts about this campaign i wonder if anyone is actually thinking critically about this... if there are people taking away all sentiment from this video and looking at the impact and sheer brilliance of this video actually. I know this is an unpopular opinion, but stay with me...


The video doesn't introduce any of the celebrities, the assumption they make is that these people are so popular that they need not be introduced. Goodluck Johnathan's picture is never shown, just his name, again the assumption that anyone who sees this video obviously knows who he is, and yeah that was a brilliant, albeit condescending assumption. Now lets look at who is in the video: Genevieve Nnaji, Stephanie Okereke, Monalisa Chinda, Ini Edo, Olu Jacobs, Ramsey Noah and Desmond Elliott. These are some of the biggest names in Nollywood, if you do not know all of them, you at least know some or one of them. Clearly the purpose of the video is to persuade people to vote for Goodluck Johnathan.

I don't get why people are angry at this... Every time, in every political campaign or even social movements people use public figures to gain access to a larger audience in order to persuade them to support their goals. They didnt use just any actor, these actors are people a large percentage of the Nigerian public trusts and respect. This is a smart campaign, you are using people with high credibility to make Goodluck more credible.

The general theme in all the comments i have read is; They were paid for it, they sold out etc... blah blah blah. I think it is fair to say that we dont know for sure if they were paid for this. 


Now lets talk ethics. I get that there is a question that needs to be asked, but lets leave all sentiments aside, this is NOT a crime, this is NOT unethical. All of the actors/actresses in that video are not only members of the electorate, they are NOT running for office, and as much as they are public figures, they are also private citizens as well. Politics is messy... it has always been since the beginning of time, it will always be messy.

 The only problem i had with this video was the title of the video. Really guys, i get that these people are some of the big names in Nollywood, but Nollywood is a huge, very huge industry, 7 people cannot possibly be a sample size of the 2nd largest film industry in the world. However, the title i think was supposed to give an illusion...but still that title was grossly misleading.


The problem i have with the people commenting on this video, is that they do not give the Nigerian public credit. Really angry people, you think that Nigerians are dumb, you think that the video will just make everyone go to vote for Goodluck, come on, give us some credit. Yes, there will always be the people who will vote for GEJ just because they saw that video, just like there will be in this country, Muslims who wont vote for a Christian candidate, and Christians who wont vote for a Muslim candidate. Let me Reiterate: THE PURPOSE OF THIS VIDEO IS TO PERSUADE PEOPLE TO VOTE FOR GOODLUCK

Unlike in the States where the political parties are defined by certain principles, in Nigeria, we have to rely on the candidates. For example, Gen. Atiku Abubakar has moved from one party to another in the last four years. In the states, for a Candidate to move from thr Democratic Party to the Republican Party, you will be making a huge leap from the left to the right, from liberal to conservative.  A Democrat is generally more liberal,  while a Republican is generally more conservative. We really can't name a Liberal or Conservative party in Nigeria. We rely on what we know about the candidate and what we hear, we see or the people that come out to endorse them. It is a tactic used for any sort of campaign or Social movement. Do you know how many people registered to vote because Banky W gave asked them to? I don't know but i bet it influenced people to vote. We love Banky W, we enjoy his music, we trust him, so we listen to what he has to say.

Ultimately, the truth, the truth that stares us in the face is this, the purpose of persuasion is to influence beliefs using both verbal and non verbal messages, prepared and presented to various individuals. A person can only be persuaded when they make the deicison to be persuaded. Regardless of the video or whatever campaigns we see, at the end of the day, when you walk in to that booth YOU make your decision on who to vote for all by yourself, in fact no one has to know who you voted for, that the beauty of it! But you do need to vote! You absolutely must vote. 

The celebrities who  publicly endorse candidates have strong convictions about that candidate, and when they do they realize the influence they have on people's thoughts and actions, however it is up to the person to decide what to to do with it. 

PS: This is not about the right candidate or the wrong candidate. This piece is about persuasion and the ethics of it. I am not endorsing any candidate.

The Elections are here!

The reason why Naija will never be like Egypt or Libya is because unlike in these 2 countries where the leaders care about power, our leaders care about money. In a way that is a good thing, we've never really relied on the government for anything, water, security etc. But from tomorrow we have an opportunity to let our voices be heard. It doesn't matter who you vote for, but it does matter that you vote. This country operates on the principle that the government is chosen by the people and for the people, lets make it so. We might not see the changes now, but maybe 20 years from now we will have re-invented what democracy means to the average Nigerian. We are taking a step in the right direction.  Naija o ni baje! R.S.V.P

Thoughts on the Nigerian Presidential Debate

I was lucky to watch the Presidential debate moderated by the very competent Kadaria Ahmed, the woman is flawless, she is quick with comebacks and follow up questions, in fact she made the debate. Congrats to her. 

Like me, lots of Nigerians watched it either on TV in Nigeria and for those in the diaspora we had to tune to Ustream to watch it. As always the debate started an hour late because the candidates arrived an hour late, ah, let’s blame it on African time shall we?  

By far the most disappointing person of the night has to be incumbent president Goodluck Jonathan, many of us were looking forward to watching him debate as he is one of the top, if not the top candidates at the moment. The #whataboutus campaign has invited him for a debate and has not gotten any reply yet, so this was a chance to see what he was made of, and he didn’t show up. Although after watching Dame Patience Goodluck, his wife speak in public he may have made the right decision after all.(too much? hmm)

I am not going to give a summary of the debate, because it was really long, rather I wanted to address the strengths and weakness of the candidates as observed by a 21 year old Nigerian girl watching and taking notes.

Ibrahim Shekarau (Current Governor of Kano State): By far the most eloquent of the night, Shekarau was composed answered his questions without hesitation and impressed me. However given that he has been president of Kano for 8 years and there is nothing to show for it, i had a hard time buying his argument. His responses seemed like a page out of a textbook, carefully formed and pleasing to hear. Also when he was asked why he terminated the polio vaccination in Kano on the grounds that they were plans to make women infertile, his response to the question showed a side of him that was shocking, he responded that he had to put the immunizations on hold to investigate the matter. Polio was not something that originated in Nigeria, lots of countries had successfully wiped out polio using vaccinations before the vaccination came to Nigeria, so putting the program on hold, while children died because of something he couldn’t prove was shocking to me and made me question his ability to make a proper decision that will benefit the people who elected him into office.  In my opinion, Shekarau could have easily won this debate, he was composed and smart, yet his past decisions and failure to bring substantial change to the state of Kano after 8 years as governor brings doubts to my mind.  

Muhammadu Buhari (Former Military President of Nigeria): General Buhari was hands down the most experienced of the 3 candidates, he was a president in the military regime for 2 years and this should have been a relatively easy debate for him given his experience. However, the General simply failed to connect with me and I am sure most of the youth of Nigeria. 70% of people in Nigeria are aged 18-35, making this the largest group in the electorate. General Buhari is 68 years old making him at least 33 years older than 70% of the Nigerian electorate, I simply couldn’t understand him, or connect with the plans he had for Nigeria. I felt that he was still living in the 1970s, coupled with the fact that he was a prominent figure in one of the most repressing times in Nigeria I could not properly give him my full attention or allow him to convince me of his plans to make Nigeria better. A question that stood out to me was when the moderator Kadaria asked him why his kids attended private schools, and his answer, which I am paraphrasing was, there is nothing wrong with sending your kids to private school if you can afford to in a democratic country. The message I got from this reply was that while the public education system in Nigeria is substandard, if you can afford to send your kids to private school, by all means do, this is a democracy. The problem with this response is that while it is gravely elitist, it shows someone who really doesn’t have a plan for the millions of Nigerians who cannot afford to send their children to private schools. I went to a private school, however if the government had a public educational system in place that ensured I would get world class education and be able to compete with students around the world like I am doing today, I am 100% sure my parents and many more parents in Nigeria would have been more than willing to use the money they spent in their children’s education to use somewhere else, maybe to buy fuel to supply power to their homes. I was furious at General Buhari’s response and whatever he said afterwards was a blur to me. In my opinion he failed to connect with me and many young Nigerians who make up 70% of the electorate.

Mallam Nuhu Ribadu (Former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commision): Ribadu was the least experienced  candidate, he was also very witty and quick but also showed lots of emotion, I cannot count the number of times I wondered if he was going to scream, he barely kept to time, he started answering questions before the moderator finished asking, he continued talking after the bell, at some point he kept talking so much so the moderator had to warn him that he agreed to the rules of the debate. A question that stood out to me was the first question of the debate, when he was asked that, and I am paraphrasing, if he prosecuted Former Lagos Governor Tinubu and said the crime was one on international proportions, isn’t it curious that Tinubu is now a “godfather” of sorts in his capmpaign. Mallam Ribadu was quick to explain that “the crime” was of international proportions, but  he doesn’t sit in judgement of the person. This confused me, and still does, it seems to me that if a person commits a crime, then their character should definitely be questioned. We don’t catch a thief and say, “Well the crime was horrible, but you can still be a part of a campaign for presidency” However, mallam ribadu’s contribution to the reduction of corruption in Nigeria cannot be brushed under a carpet and forgotten. I felt that I conntected to him well, he reminded us he was young, 50 years old and ready to lead, he used personal stories to illustrate his point and appealed to our emotion in doing so. I think that there will be questions about “Tinubu and Ribadu” and I need those answers, the logic behind the argument on his involvement in his campaign was flawed, however witty and funny he was in the debate.

So,who won the debate? I don’t know, why don’t you decide and tell me? For me, I know that I am confused, my mind is not yet made up. Governor Shekarau was a surprisingly good debater, but do we want a president that can debate like a walking text book or do we want a president  that can put those ideas into action. General Buhari is the most experienced candidate, but do we want a president who has lost touch with 70% of the electorate? Mallam Ribadu was vibrant and witty, but for a champion of anti-corrutpion measures how can he justify the “Tinubu connection”.


 At the end of the day it is up to us to choose who is the best candidiate for us, I wrote this piece not to tell you who to vote for but to share my opinion on what I observed.

I look forward to the #whataboutus debate happening on Friday, March 25^th hosted by Naija’s own Jewels: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Ebuka Obi-Uchendu.

For more information about the #whataboutus campaign and debate, like the Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/whataboutusnigeria?sk=info or visit the website here: http://whataboutusnigeria.org/

Thank you

My Apologies

I dont even know how many people read this blog, but to all of you who do, i am sorry i have not updated in a while, i am currently preparing and studying for finals so i dont have the time right now...but once i am done, we will get down.. Thanks for understanding :)

Genevieve Nnaji's Interview on Connect the World (CNN International)

Today Nigerian Actress, Genevieve Nnaji's interview with Connect the World aired. If you are an African, who has seen any African movie you know who Genevieve Nnaji is, she is Nigeria's greatest export since Crude oil, she is Nigeria's 21st century National Treasure. Today she did us proud, in a country that is constantly labelled with negative verbs and usually in the spotlight for negative things, i was proud to thump my chest and say "Yes, I'm Nigerian! We have Genevieve Nnaji"


Here is the interview:
http://edition.cnn.com/CNNI/Programs/connect.the.world/

I have been a fan of Genevieve since I saw her on Ijele. Her presence on screen is captivating, the one thing I am sure of in a Nollywood movie is: If Genevieve is in it, I must watch, no questions asked. This is probably one of the areas in life I am predicatable in. Genevieve has a way of capturing your attention of making you believe her pain as we saw in "Two Together" or making you believe she is one sassy B*tch as we saw in "Caught in the act" Its no surprise she has ganared a huge fan base.

I remember my parents never let me buy the home videos and movies we watched at home because I will always come back with Genevieve's movies, much to everyone's anger, they'll say, "we just watched her movie last week" and I'll say "we didn't watch this one" I could not help it though, I only cared about watching her movies, such talent, so composed, so confident, so elegant.

Genevieve has been nothing but gracious the times we've chatted. When she started her Fanbook www.genevievennajifanbook.ning.com no other Nollywood actor had a fanbook, but now they are all over the place, most of them do not however come to chat with their fans as regularly as Genevieve does.

There are many actresses that I adore: Jennifer Beals, Tina Fey, Meryl Streep, Angelina Jolie, Julianne Moore. None of these actresses make me proud in the way that Genevieve does, she is a woman, but not just that, A Nigerian Woman. She inspires me and a lot of other people I am sure, to remain focused, humble and work hard.

She is Nigeria's 21st Century National Treasure, and my Role Model. I'm a lifelong fan. Congratulations on your continuous achievement, for making Nigerians allover the world proud. This is the beginning of greater things to come!

Go Cougars! ;-)

All photos from: http://genevievennajifanbook.ning.com/

About Nigerian Actress Ufuoma Ejenobor and the Nigerian Police

Unless you've been living under a rock you've probably heard about what happened between the above parties. But for the people wey don rent rock let me rehash the story:


On October 29, Ufuoma was driving in her car when  "Suddenly, a Toyota Hilux Truck, marked ESCORT, roughly squeezed its way in between, hit my car from the rear and sped off. He damaged the right side fender. I was frightened. I thought they were armed robbers. To my surprise, the driver did not show any sign of regret that he had damaged my car. That was when I drove after him.” She chased after the car and when they did not stop she became angry as anyone would. But as she said  “they called me all sorts of unprintable names like (witch, prostitute) asking ,”who gave you the car? One of them even threatened to shoot me. I kept pursuing them until I caught up with them at the front of the Divisional Police Headquarters, Zone 2, Lagos.”


And afterwards some of the men beat her, and this is what happened


http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid17190315001?bctid=676239192001

Some serious stuff, no? I mean she is furious here and understandably so. Well here are my thoughts: First off, I do not doubt that this happened as the Nigerian police has proved that 98% of the time they do not work for the interest of the public. Their function in society is still a puzzle to me, what is it that they do? Stand by the road and take bribes? Come to weddings as security but drink themselves to a stupor, what is it that they do exactly? Are they a public service group or are we supposed to pay them to look after us and ensure our safety? Tell me why anyone needs a security man guarding their houses while they sleep? Because we cannot count on the police to protect us, that's why! Have you seen them on the road, they drive like there is no one in front of them, not caring about the lives they are putting in danger. 


Everyone knows the traffic situation in Nigeria is not pretty, but The Police, they don't care! They want to drive through you to get to where they are going, because what's more important to them is going to that person who is going to pay them or going to stand at that junction to collect 20 Naira bills from commuters. Ufuoma is a victim, but unlike you and I, she is a public figure, and now that she is not keeping quiet about this, all those people who were treated the same way have a voice, someone like them only more famous. 


People have questiond the validity of the incident, but let me ask you this; What does she have to gain by putting herself out there like that? She did not look like she was having fun while screaming, that looked like a woman tired, angry, stressed and confused. The police needs a Makeover and fast. The government needs to re-examine the reasons for forming the police force and get rid of the Bad people in it, I don't doubt that there are good officers, however it seems that there is more bad than good associated with the Nigerian Police. Behaviour like this is unnaceptable and for the police to say that she was asking for it, is callous and insensitive! 


 It is a sad day when we have to protect ourselves from the people, whose job it is to protect us.

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Lets talk about the Upcoming Nigerian Elections

I like to live in a realistic world and have realistic expectations, no matter how hopeful I am of the future. That is why I recognize that in Nigeria there is just 1 political party, no matter how you look at it, since we became a Democratic country in 1999, we have had one party, PDP, produce the presidential candidate that eventually became president. 1999, 2003,2007 and now 2011. Most of the state governors in Nigeria (28 to be exact) are PDP members, what this tells us is, any candidate that is "elected" by PDP as the presidential candidate IS going to be president. Having established that, it is time to look at what that means for the upcoming elections.


We have two Major candidates running under the PDP platform:


Ibrahim B. Babangida 
Born: August 17 1941
Age: 69
Public Service
Chief of Army Staff in Nigeria: January 1984 – August 1985
Head of state: August 27, 1985 – August 27, 1993

Politically known for: Being the first military President of Nigeria. Conducting a bloodless coup to overthrow Buhari's regime with the promise of promoting human rights. Was married to Miriam Babangida, who was publicly loved, she dies from ovarian cancer on December 27, 2009 (Rest in Peace). Known for annulling the June 12 elections of 1993 which M.K.O Abiola won, the annulment lead to a political crisis that led to General Sani Abach seizing power. He also allegedly used a letter-bomb to assasinate Dele Giwa, a Nigerian journalist and Founder of Newswatch Magazine, he was critical of Babangida's administration. While this has not been confirmed there has been evidence of this as stated by the Oputa Panel reports "On General Ibrahim Babangida, we are of the view that there is evidence to suggest that he and the two security chiefs, Brigadier General Halilu Akilu and Col. A. K. Togun are accountable for the death of Dele Giwa by letter bomb. We recommend that this case be re-opened for further investigation in the public interest." http://www.dawodu.com/oputa1.pdf


Goodluck E. Johnathan
Born: 20 November 1957 
Age:  52
Public Service: 
Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State: May 29, 1999 – December 29, 2005
Governor of Bayelsa State: December 29, 2005 to May 28, 2007
Vice President of Nigeria: May 29,  2007 – May 6, 20
President of Nigeria: May 6, 2010 - Present

Politically Known For: Goodluck Johnathan's political career has been marked by "hand of God" type of moments, as a Deputy governor he came to power after the Governor was charged with money laundering. He became Vice-President and subsequently President, after President Umaru Yar'adua died on May 5th, 2010 (Rest in Peace). His politically stance on Anti-corruption, power and electoral reform were applauded by many, however significant changes have not been made in either sector. His most notable political decision was banning the Super Eagles from International Games after their performance in the 2010 world cup. This decision was however recalled, after FIFA objected to the decision.


Now you know who they are, maybe, lets talk about what this election means for us, for the future  of Nigeria, and for the future of our generation and generations to come. 


This election is crucial, if you didn't know, now you know. This is the time for us to take our country back, and put the power in the hands of a person who might not be as corrupt as the other Candidate, i am not advocating that GEJ is spotless, however given the political climate in Nigeria, it has comedown to picking the lesser evil, who is the Candidate less-likely to RUIN our country, less likely to think he has the power to deny someone (Abiola) of his presidency in an election that was considered free and fair.


It is up to us to vote, we hope that the elections are free and fair this time, but this is a democracy, WE GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO CHOOSE!