LAGOS APC RALLY: THE GRAND FINALE OF PASSIONATE COMMITMENT

By: Shehu Bashir Esq.

21st of February is the most significant day of each year for me but the principle of modesty doesn’t allow me make it a fanfare. I never did. I don’t fancy the needless noise about such day in anybody’s life, as everyday is a birthday of gratitude for as long as we live.

However, the coincidence of that day with the APC Presidential Campaign Rally Grand Finale as held in Lagos gave me a special kind of fulfilment and I was happy I spent all the day making history at that gathering. My family wanted me to stay back in Abuja for a birthday treat, I said to them, the best birthday celebration for me is to attend this grand finale. I have never had to mark the day as a ceremony but having the grace to attend that grand finale gave me the opportunity to specially celebrate a day like this with Asiwaju taking the final step to presidential victory, Maa Shaa Allahu..

The presidential campaign has been a tasking one. Our presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima ran a unique campaign. They demonstrated resilience in the midst of needless attacks, they persevered in the face of conspiracy, they stood focused in the midst of distraction and they tolerated every thread of betrayal. Their doggedness can’t be compared to any other team. They represent integrity.

Many things have happened before and after the primary elections that you will wonder the extent some people have taken this contest. The fact that we all know is that, whatever happened, pre and post-primary election and still happening now are all politics and the determining factor in the trajectory of the players is interest. The interest may either be good or bad – good on patriotic level and bad on the selfish level. Those who wanted consensus to “install” a stooge as against the the actual election for free and fair choice aren’t necessarily doing it for the good motive, otherwise, why would anyone be angry over a product that the primary produced in a free and fair contest?. It was a grievance that is so difficult to reconcile by those who lost out.

When emotion becomes the measure of judgement, no doubt the innocent would be adjudged criminal while the guilty is decorated in honour garb.

Truth be told, a true principle of immutable integrity does not have to compromise for the desperation of an ambition. The anger of your failure at an effort in political pursuit or any career wish cannot and should not be visited on those who succeeded, not even those who helped you when you are at the brink of depression.

Whatever makes a man shift his principle to dine with “them” to hurt others does not say the presence of any such dialectic principle in him, it just says more about the phantom of such mirage. A principled man does not pay back good with evil, if anything. The cardinal point of any principle is to be kind to all, even when you are at a disadvantage. Atleast, we learnt that from the Amiru L Mumeen – Rassulullahi SAW.

While the opposition has no good to their fight, the insidious enemies who strangely decided to help the opposition load and fire their guns started firing from every angle which though ended in futile efforts. Monetary policy was weaponized. People were denied access to their legitimate money and every floor became crater to hell of hopelessness – every aspect of our lives became a war to fight for, no cash to buy basic items in the market and digital money transfer facility was deliberately compromised. Yet, Nigerians remain resolute not to pedal the vehicle of those who want to drive us into a lagoon of war.

Before the cash crunch treason, fuel crises has lingered, turning our paradise into hell in split second. No one could understand why all these were happening at the same. Yet, we resolved to have a bunk in the filling stations to pass the nights than to burn them down.

Nigerians are one of the rarest wonders of the world. We often don’t operate with “global best practices” in crises management. Ee design our “right” response to any given situation as we may find it appropriate. No one would have predicted that Nigerians will bear these to this extent. We must commend ourselves for a job well done.

One thing is clear. Contrary to the expectations of the “engineers” behind this mill of horror, Nigerians chose to show their commitment to democracy. They have resolved to rebuff and resist all attempts to derail this democracy and they have done that with almost zero reference to anything that have been found in any previous social study literature. We are so politically creative.

This campaign is like no other in the history of our political trajectory. It is particularly a strange time where the attacks, conspiracies and cynicism against a candidate is orchestrated by beneficiaries of government appointment who are hellbent in doing everything against the candidate. In the face of this, the ordinary people became the collateral damage, turning into the board that receive the arrow in an archery game. Our skin were pierced. Nothing can be so displeasing to the people than that. Yet, we resorted to comforting ourselves with lines of beautiful rhyme of “Ko kudi, ko free, Asiwaju dole” by Rarara.

There is no better way to describe the resilience of Nigerians than the the mark of their presence at the grand finale of the APC Presidential Campaign in Lagos. The stone of conspiracy and apathy thrown into the wheel of the APC progress was too sandy to stop the people of Nigeria from trooping out to receive Asiwaju. On that day, many people chose to receive him at the airport on arrival from Abuja. They didn’t just receive him and jump into their cars, they followed him on foot with the motorcade from Ikeja to Surulere. That should probably be a walk of over 8 kilometres. No money can be valuable enough to make you walk that distance except that you have staked your life to make this dream a reality.

It was indeed an experience that will serve as research question for further study. This show of commitment has rubbished the lies of those who think the mammoth crowds that often attend APC rallies are rented. Nothing can be more credible than to have a cashless policy in place, yet, the cashless crowd who have no access to cash nor able to receive transfer trooping out in thousands and walking on foot to show their commitment to Tinubu’s presidency. Whoever told them Nigerians are cheap must have taken the grace of God for granted.

Nothing can be more provocative to cause anarchy than what Nigerians went through and still going through in the hands of this insensitive “constituted authorities”. Everyday, they bring different policies most of which are contradictory in application and execution. They say one thing now and say another thing the next minutes. They confuse the populace like they are waiting to suck the blood of innocent Nigerians when they become a victim. It’s beyond comprehension. Yet Nigerians aren’t reacting as envisaged by these men of the doomsday.

At that grand finale, I saw the passion of readiness, the resilience of commitment, the impatience of running time, just for 25th of February to come and go in fulfilment. To say that Nigerians are not angry with anyone directly and indirectly complicit in this hardship is to hypocritize diplomacy, but we refuse to be made the “barbeque” for palace mutiny.

At that rally, I saw the comportment of the people, who have become general advisors for Asiwaju. The Nigerians that Asiwaju has been pleading with to be patient for the renewal of their hope are the ones advising him to endure but just for a short time. What a complimentary patriotism!

One thing that suits me more was the admonition by all the supporters, motivating all APC members to go back to their polling units on election day to deliver their units for the APC. It was a task we must fulfill. Because the units make a whole, I and my fellow patriots have promised ourselves that we must go out to make the final engagement with our people at the polling unit level to canvass for votes. I have vowed to do everything legally possible to deliver my unit to the APC. Come 25th February, 2023, I shall be voting for APC – Asiwaju-Shettima at my Polling Unit 005, Oke-Ogun Ward, Ilorin South Local Government Area of Kwara State and I shall deliver my Unit for the APC and Tinubu – Shettima. May God help me.

GOD IS HERE