By Abba Hamisu Sani
Africa-Press-Nigeria Throughout time there has been a strong emphasis in the understanding of voting behavior. Religion is a strong indicator of an individual’s voting behavior. Religion has an important impact in how the voter looks at specific issues, such as abortion, homosexuality, the environment, and economics. The voter then uses his or her response to these issues as a guideline to help determine which presidential candidate to vote for. It is therefore reasonable to understand that religion has a significant influence on an individual’s voting behavior in presidential elections.
The Executive Director, Africa Polling Institute (API), Professor Bell Ihua, a reknowned pollster , Argues that Nigeria of 2022 is not the same as that of 1993 and the fielding of Muslim-Muslim ticket in the presidential poll in 2023 will be dead on arrival.
Expectations of Nigerians
In terms of general outlook for the year from citizens’ perspective, I believe citizens would be looking forward to accessing more dividends of democracy from the government that they elected into power, especially as it relates to human and infrastructural development. I believe there’s so much expectation from Nigerians regarding improved citizens’ welfare and living conditions.
You know COVID-19 took its toll on the country, with attendant effects on citizens and they would be looking to see how the government would weather the storm to improve security, economy, and general wellbeing of citizens.
There are some sectors government should focus its attention on. The first is security. Only a few days ago we learnt of bandits attacking communities in Zamfara and killing over 200 innocent unarmed citizens. It should be unheard of in the 21st century. It appears human life no longer means anything to us, that people can be slaughtered at will. One of the core responsibilities of government is security, and it is worrisome that we are still getting these sorts of stories in the news.
Citizens need the government and security forces to step up their efforts in the area of providing security to citizens. The second area is the economy. 2021 was a tough year for citizens, especially those in the lower rung of the social class. I say this because I travelled across the country and interviewed citizens in every single state I visited. I even led a national poverty profile survey and personally interacted with poor citizens. The poverty and unemployment rates are still pretty high, and citizens would like to see government policies that would alleviate widespread poverty and bolster the economy to create more jobs. We have a bulging youth population, with about 35 percent or a one third of whom are unemployed and too many graduates fighting for too few jobs. This is a recipe for chaos, and we saw a bit of this during the October 2020
#EndSARS protests. We must be thinking of how to create jobs for our unemployed young people. The third area I would like the government to focus its attention on is the area of food security. The just-concluded festive season witnessed a drastic spike in the cost of food items across the county, despite the low disposable income of citizens. Although this is not surprising, as we had seen this coming from the results and findings of our past polls and surveys. I have also listened to anecdotes from citizens on the field, and they told me that a lot of farmers could not maximize the planting season due to insecurity or what is often referred to as farmers-herders or bandit crises. In fact, It should simply be called ‘attacks on farmers’, because in most cases, the farmers are the ones being attacked by the criminal herders and bandits. Please get my point right. I’m not saying that all herders are bad.
What I’m simply saying is that there are criminal elements amongst them who make a vocation of attacking farmers to ravage their farms or steal from them. It isn’t as if there is always a situation of crisis between farmers and bandits. For instance, how do you explain the invasion of farming communities and the sporadic shooting and killings of unarmed citizens? Do you call that crisis between two groups? This is how it often occurs.
Some pundits have said that Nigerians would be willing to vote for any candidate, what role do you believe religion and ethnicity would play in the General Elections next year?
From my experience, I believe religion and ethnicity would play a role in the elections. Unfortunately, that is where we currently are as a nation. Religion and ethnicity have become intertwined into our politics; so, much as anyone would talk about the credentials and qualities of an incoming leader when the chips are down, religion and ethnicity would still play a role. However, this isn’t to despair because credible and competent candidates can be found from across the major religious affiliations and ethnic groupings in the country. So, it behoves on the political parties to put their best foot forward.
Elections next year?
From the standpoint of a pollster, one who has polled Nigerians on this issue, the predominant view of Nigerians is that zoning has come to stay in our system of politics for now. For instance, the president is about serving out his 8-year tenure, it has become accepted in the minds of Nigerians that for the sake of equity since the president is from the northern extraction of the country, the next president should come from the southern extraction; and possibly since the current president is a Muslim, that the next president should be a Christian. These are modern-day realities of the Nigeria of today; however, we know politicians have their ways and often disagree to agree over these matters.
We’ve heard some politicians say that Nigerians would be willing to vote for credible candidates from any part of the country, even if it’s a Muslim-Muslim or Christian-Christian ticket, what’s your take on this?
Again, as I said earlier, I can only speak from my perspective as a pollster, someone who has actively been involved in conducting over 500 national public opinion polls and surveys in Nigeria over the last decade. To that extent, I can say that you’re correct because Nigeria is in dire need of credible and competent leaders in every sector and level of governance today. However, when you talk about a Muslim-Muslim or Christian-Christian ticket, I can tell you it is dead on arrival. Any politician who speaks this way either lacks understanding of the current socio-political interplay in the country or is simply wicked and mischievous. You must understand that the Nigeria of 2022 isn’t the same Nigeria of 1993. Events have occurred, the tides have changed, politicians have not helped matters, there has been a deepening of the fault lines over the last 20 to 23 years. This country is much more divided today compare to 1993 than you can imagine, and the dynamics are different. Data from our social cohesion survey provides evidence to substantiate this. In 2019, 45 percent of Nigerians said the country was more divided than the preceding 4 years. But by 2021 that proportion had jumped up to 65 percent of Nigerians who thought that the country was much more divided. So, for anybody to tell you that the same religion ticket will work in by Nigeria at a time like this is simply living in wonderland. He or she isn’t on ground.
Integrity
The importance of integrity should be obvious. Though it may not necessarily be a metric in employee evaluations, integrity is an essential leadership trait for the individual and the organization. It’s especially important for top-level executives who are charting the organization’s course and making countless other significant decisions. Our research shows that integrity may actually be a potential blind spot for organizations.
Make sure your organization reinforces the importance of honesty and integrity to leaders at various levels.
Ability to Delegate
Delegating is one of the core responsibilities of a leader, but it can be tricky to delegate effectively. The goal isn’t just to free yourself up — it’s also to enable your direct reports to grow, facilitate teamwork, provide autonomy, and lead to better decision-making. The best leaders build trust with employees in order to delegate more effectively.
Communication
Effective leadership and effective communication are intertwined. The best leaders are skilled communicators who are able to communicate in a variety of ways, from transmitting information to inspiring others to coaching direct reports. And you must be able to listen to, and communicate with, a wide range of people across roles, geographies, social identities, and more. The quality and effectiveness of communication among leaders across your organization directly affects the success of your business strategy, too. Learn how effective communication and better conversations can actually improve your organizational culture.
Self-Awareness
While this is a more inwardly focused trait, self-awareness and humility are paramount for leadership. The better you understand yourself and recognize your own strengths and weaknesses, the more effective you can be as a leader. Do you know how other people view you or how you show up at work? Take the time to learn about the 4 aspects of self-awareness and how you can strengthen each component.
