- By Alao Abiodun Joshua
Advice is a stranger; if he’s welcome he stays for the night; if not, he leaves the same day. ~Malagasy Proverb
Every campaign strategy by majority of the aspirants starts with the question, "How can I win?” Unfortunately, many times this decision is made on the basis of anecdotal evidence or by simply assuming that because one is popular therefore dominant victory is assured, well with the scheme of things, it’s quite evidential to an extent that the electorate are no longer interested in the pomp that surrounds our political tycoons, with the rising trend, it seems the students are now ready to pay attention to tiny bits of details rather than the regular superfluous syndrome of momentary familiarization and several attempts to cover up a couple of flaws with jingles and cute posters, just as a reminder, It’s important that student leaders should concentrate more on delivering on their political promises rather than the perks of office.
“It is not over till it’s over,” is a notable quote by the late, great baseball legend Yogi Berra. As election results came in Saturday night, with various aspirants emerging as winners, and then it finally dawned on everyone that it’s a new beginning on many fronts, but that it’s not all over. There are therefore many arguments posited that it’s easier to win an election than to run an administration, as it stands the political terrain seems to be returning back in a low pedal oscillation.
Congratulations to the newly elected Executives, both the opposed and Unopposed. Well, the victory of the president-elect was exceptional for a number of reasons; it’s a record-breaking feat, he convincingly and gallantly strode to victory to emerge as winner against all odds. The beauty of an administration is the implementation of all outlined promises to a large extent; the electorates have decided their fate and their fate have been faithfully laid into your hands. Many are presently basked in the euphoria of victory, while many have their faces buried in disbelief and disappointment. But, what can make a better union is not just the Team Patriotic intelligentsia agenda. This is a common and unrepentant mistake we have always made for a period of aeon, even though there are arguments that the agenda of the head translates into the administration collective decision-making process; Team Assurance, Team Productivity, Team Blah Blah you are all needed to make a better, vibrant and solid union. We Students, with emphasis that we all possess high level of intelligentsia, must remain patriotic, unionize in solidarity with a great assurance for a stronger union free from the shackles of oppression and unjust victimization by the super-ordinates; we should not think of carrying on without that collective platform, it’s therefore expedient to reiterate that the Students’ union activities is a collective responsibility; Failure is only an avenue to learn from mistakes and move on. You might not have emerged as an executive member of the union, but surely, you are a Uite who will be affected by the decisions of elected ones for the session; It is not until you become an executive member of the cabinet before you can make a celestial impact; you can set the pace even as a Uite. Service is not only about being at the helm affairs, it is about creating affairs.
A bit away from that epoch, to the newly elected executives which has not come with empty-palm, but with new executives who have been selected and voted on the basis of various mouth-watering promises-presumably new they willingly divulged. The decisions of these ones to render humanitarian services in the capacity of this student unionism have no doubt placed upon them with different roles as well as responsibilities, thus enabling them answerable to the gain-say ascribed to leaders, that: ‘with great leadership, power and obligation comes greater responsibilities’; Embedded in common notions of leadership activities are: perceptions of power, authority and responsibility.
Going by the revelations that have surfaced in the last couple of weeks, it is not impossible that we have resigned ourselves to the lie that the youth of this generation are unprepared to take over from the current crop of leaders at the national level and make a difference for good. Truly, it hurts that there is still so much to joggle with, especially in our political life as individuals. It is more heart-breaking that majority of the youth today have turn to social media lions but puppies in the face of the real problem.
Well, just like the Yoruba adage says, “When a blacksmith keeps on hitting on a particular spot, it means that he has seen something important that need serious attention”, though there are several mistakes made by the outgoing executives, majority do not want that mistakes to be repeated. It’s therefore necessary and important to carry the students along in the dealings of the activities of the union; all aforementioned promises must be promulgated to a large extent.
Dear newly-elected union executives, before you surround yourselves with godfathers and cabals, beware of the naked man who offers you clothes. On this note, you must remain allocentric in your dealings with uites. Well, just like the African proverb posited, it says “Ears that do not listen to advice, accompany the head when it is chopped off.”
*To all Uites, we have spoken and just voting is not enough. We are part of this administration and even the greatest arm of Union. Let's participate actively and shun political apathy, most importantly ensure the use of constructive criticism, the press is not only responsible for this, though we are their friends just like the Nigerian Police, Love it or hate it, It is our UNION.
