The presidential election triggered off many questions.
One indisputable fact that emerged with the conduct of the Presidential election is that for the first time in a long time, a large number of individuals came out to vote, although with the highest percentage being the youths and consisting more of first-time voters.
The 2023 Lagos State Gubernatorial election will take place on March 18 2023, and this is in line with the elections for the seat of the State’s House of Assembly.
The Gubernatorial election is expected to be between five political parties: The All-Progressive Congress (APC), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Labour Party (LP), the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP).
The current Governor General of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu of the APC is vouching for re-election and has contenders from the said parties. It was stated according to INEC that the winning candidate has to secure the majority of votes and have at least 25% of the votes in two-thirds of each LGAs.
Looking inwards
The drive and passion in the hearts of many were kindled on hearing the prospects of the selected candidates.
This is no mean feat as our elderly individuals who have watched the conduct of the previous elections of about 10, 20 years ago could testify!
Given the situation of individuals living in Lagos, the most populous city in Africa with a population of about 24 million, many have acclaimed that the democratic election is a game of numbers, with the population shifting from the older people to the younger ones.
With the old order gradually fading away, it is possible that there is a new dawn of the younger population beaming with glistening hopes and enthusiasm as regards the elections.
Expectations
From the onset of Nigeria’s independence, elections have been conducted in line with violence, ballot snatching, rigging of votes and loss of lives.
Despite the higher percentage of the youths, the older generation had taken up leadership with each in power holding corruptible tendencies.
With news of voters’ intimidations, violence and other misconducts in the electoral space carried out to suppress the vote for particular candidates, and following the Presidential election, many believe that there is a high or equal chance that the violence meted out would reoccur again.
Ethnic tensions are likely to occur, with Lagos being a hub of various ethnic groups and dominated by some tribes in some locations but even in the like of these issues, it is pertinent that more effort should be put into the electoral and security agencies to ensure a safe election.
The Mandate
The recent choice of candidates has a few of youthful age contesting for the highest position in the state, but the majority of youths supporting these individuals are literally invisible, as they are present majorly in social media.
But with the outcome of the Presidential elections, there is a new wave of change as many have vowed to take a visible part in the election as they believe that it is time for a revolution.
Elections by their nature speak of what happened, is happening or has already happened in the minds of the citizens.
Following the words of the late President of the United States of America, John F. Kennedy, on his defeat of Richard Nixon in the 1960 election, declared that ‘The margin is thin, but the responsibility is clear. When the votes are counted, however thin the margin, the man who has that margin cannot escape the responsibility of power’.
Just like the Americans, for the Governorship elections in Lagos, every Lagosian is entitled to expect that the elected Governor cares passionately about the fate of the people he leads and should be able to open several communication links between the world of thought and the seat of power.
