Tag Archives: elections
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.
Bennett Omeke – PDP, APC
Here, Bennet Omeke captures the reality of party politics in Nigeria in creatively, as one would expect. This piece highlights a usual cycle in Nigerian politics: politicians defecting from one party to another.
However, instead of policians, Omeke uses worms. There are two apples. An infested and a rotten one labeled PDP (People’s Democratic Party) and a soon-to-be-rotten and -infested one labeled APC (All Progressives Congress).
The worms – the politicians – have already infested and sucked vitality out of the rotten apple and now they are on their way to their next victim: the apple that is being infested.
The other part of the cartoon is a reversal of the first. It shows what happens after a cycle of infestation is complete. Another cycle begins.
Bennet Omeke – Towards 2019
Pot calling kettle black. Here are two men engaging in a mudslinging game. Each man has a bucket of mud beside him, dipping his hands into it, scooping some mud, and throwing it at his opponent. This is a classic example of what happens when politicians are preparing for elections. By all indication, these men look like members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the opposition: the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
Bennet Omeke – Again You Can’t Deceive Me…
Here, we see two members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) begging some aggrieved members not to leave. They are not just begging, they are doing so with wrapped gift packages.
The kneeling members, from all indications, look like President Muhammadu Buhari and the national chairman of the APC, Mr. Adams Oshiomole.
Perhaps the most striking feature of this cartoon are the backpacks and travel bags of the defecting members (Senators and Representatives). It is possible those bags are filled with loots.