As the elections of 2015 are beckoning at the door, no doubt, many prospective aspirants are making frantic efforts to participate in the elections. Some may be considering to contest for the Presidency; many others for the Governorship or for the Senate; House of Representatives or even for the State Houses of Assembly seats.
Undoubtedly, in fact, none of these multitudes of individual aspirants is considering one’s image at all before taking a plunge into the murky waters of politics. Not at all. Of course, what is uppermost in their minds is how to contest and to win and win at all costs.
If for anything, they are thinking seriously how to rig the election results in their favour. Or, worse still, how to spend and spend their money in order to buy victory. But verily verily I say to all these, “you are doubly wrong.”
They should do the first thing first. I was listening to a morning programme of FM Heartland on Monday entitled: Take life Jeje when I heard the presenter raising the issue of image of candidates. What he asked and told the aspirants in fact motivated me to write this article for this column: As Nigeria Turns.
It is pertinent to ask prospective aspirants some pertinent questions. Have you taken an image lab test? Have you measured the level of your popularity and acceptability in your constituency? Have you asked questions of your level and prospects of making it successfully? Have you in all honesty tried to make objective inquires from those who are likely to tell you the truth of the real status of your image in your constituency? Or, do you simply have one straight thought that you are popular and therefore that you would win? Who told you that? Does a person see himself without a mirror? Or does a person see his back unless told by someone? Have you discussed your ambition with some friends and close relations that can muster the courage to tell you the bitter truth? Or, do you depend on the opinion of those who want to feed on your ignorance of your image or those who have the grand design to lure you into the race so that at least for the period, they would be your agent from which they have to feed fat? And once you fail, they would be those who would first shade crocodile tears. My friend, just listen.
Contesting an elective office is not a simple joke. It is demanding, cumbersome and very expensive. It is not simply just to enter the race no matter the office. However, the more the higher the office the more the demanding. Even if one is to contest for the position of a Councilor, one has a lot of consultations to make in one’s immediate environment. So also for any position.The aspirant must do a lot of consultations which principally must centre on his personal image. If you are a notorious person with some habits or behaviours which members of the public abhore, please, stay back don’t waste your money and time. Such poor impression of people about you will certainly hurt you.
Even if you think that you are someone popular, you still have a lot of consultations to make because popularity is both relative and subjective. You may be popular among those you often bring together and lavish at them some bottles of drinks and some full plates of hot pepper-soup in a local bar or restaurant or fast-food. Those people would consider you to be popular because they love and like your lavish gifts. But are they the people to give you the most honest and objective opinion about yourself and your image?
Similarly, are you noted for being hot tempered, rude, arrogant, dismissive and snobbish of people? If so, you have to change your attitudes towards people. Although it is difficult for people to change their attitude, you can still modify if only to help you get accepted by the people for election purpose.
For you to have a relative image, you must be somehow acceptable to the people, particularly of the voting age and others You should be a free mended person, respectful, loyal, easy-going and to a certain extent kind to people. Before ambition materializes, you must be seen to have sympathy which is needed by people in distresses. Have the habit of visiting the bereaved, the sick or those who have suffered some disaster.
You must be a regular participant in various community activities including social activities. These must include attendance to wedding ceremonies of some sons and daughters of opinion moulders, important community leaders and those who make things move in communities. In short, they must include those who can literally “stop the air and redirect the movement of winds” within the locality.
You must also be conversant with local custom and tradition. You must possess the capacity to know a lot of people in your perceived constituency by names; attending some festivals such as football and wrestling competitions or even donating some trophies for various competitions in addition to identifying with some age grades and women organizations by presenting to them some cash donations and other supporting assistance. In short, the list is endless. That is why proactive aspirants begin on time to secure the services of special assistant or better still public relations consultant to prepare before the election some vital activities which are bound to help improve the aspirant’s image.
Thus, after all is said and done, your image is more important than the millions of naira you have stocked in the bank. If you don’t have good image, you will be shocked to see how fast that bunch of money would filter away into the thin air.
Image is in fact the mirror with which members of your constituency would see you. Therefore, it is important that anybody who wants to contest election at any level must ensure that he or she possesses a reasonable good image. This can be improved upon in the course of campaign. Only those who have good or reasonable image can work hard to improve on it. But those who are bereft of good image must take another look at their aspirations.
Time is gone and gone for good when only money can win votes even for a goat. This time, bribing and corrupting the electoral system would not help. Even when you distribute the money with oath-taking, the electorate would take your money and still vote against you, saying “it is our money he has stolen.”
You must in effect take a political lab test of your image by using every means, empirical or normative, to measure your image before you take the plunge. Because, it will save you a lot of local embarrassment should you contest an election and fail like a pack of cards. Prevention is better than cure.
