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Awosiyan Segun – 2019 rAPC vs APC…
The All Progressives Congress (APC) is the ruling political party in Nigeria. The party formed in 2013 as a coalition of aggrieved members of other political parties. Members of Congress for Progressive Change (CPC, with a large following in the North), Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN, popular in the South West), and some aggrieved members of the incumbent (in 2013) People’s Democratic Party (PDP) agreed to form an alliance that would wrestle power from PDP.
As the 2019 elections draw nearer, certain members of the APC are being considered as threats to the victory agenda of the party. Seeing this, those members decided to call themselves Reformed APC (rAPC). This is what this cartoon reveals, showing two brooms (the logo of the APC). The difference between the two, however, is that one broom is bulkier than the other. The bulky broom is the APC in its original state. The non-bulky one represents what has become of the APC as some of its strands are falling off. Those strands, one may argue, are the aggrieved APC members (rAPC) who are trying to dissociate themselves from some of the allegations of corruption leveled against some APC leaders.
Awosiyan Segun – News Fayemi Wins…
Even though this cartoon is a mockery of the gubernatorial election in Èkìtì State, it casts a broader light on the reality of democracy and electoral processes in Nigeria.
Here, we see a 6-sided coffin (probably representing the 6 geopolitical zones in the country) with the inscription “free and fair election” ready to be lowered into the ground by politicians, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
A gubernatorial election was held in Èkìtì State on July 14, 2018. The election was marred with irregularities. For one, members of the two most viable political parties in the state – the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) – were captured in a BBC report giving money to voters for votes.
Another thing that is quite symbolic in this cartoon is how there is a skeletal hand protruding from the coffin ready to be buried. This implies that stakeholders in Nigerian democracy are hellbent on burring whatever is left of democracy in the country after years of fraudulent democratic processes.
This cartoon, therefore, is a commentary on how politicians, INEC, and voters are all partners in ‘killing’ and burying free and fair election in Nigeria.
Niyi Aragbaola (NEARO) – The Youth May Decide…
Nigeria’s population is currently estimated to be 182 million, and half of it is made of people under the age of 30. As a result, many people and organizations have underscored the power of Nigerian youth in changing the fate of the country.
In this cartoon, on one side is the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu. He is quoted saying that “youth may decide 2019 election result”. On the other side is a line of youth waiting to collect 5,000 Naira (around $15) to vote for a “figurehead”.
This cartoon takes it a step further, it identifies some of the vices often engaged in by Nigerian youth. With this logic, the cartoonist is implying that Nigerian youth may not be responsible enough to support true democracy in the country. Some of the vices identified are: indecent dressing and excessive reliance on music, addiction to codeine and Tramadol (see this link: https://youtu.be/-I_Lche2otU for a BBC documentary on drug abuse among Nigerian youth), sports betting, and dependence on artificial fashion items.
Also worthy of note is the image of a young man with big biceps who seems proud to be part of the group that would snatch ballot boxes during elections.
These are the ironic ways youth will decide the result of the 2019 elections.
