Knocks, kudos as free newspaper readers comment on Jonathan, Buhari, INEC

By Emmanuel Udom

Professor Attahiru Jega, chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), is presently on the hot seat. It is expected, since the elections in Nigeria are coming up in less than two weeks, all things being equal.

Take a walk to the nearest newsstand in Nigeria and you will note that the argument is either on INEC, Goodluck Jonathan, Muhammadu Buhari, corruption, change, transformation, continuity, etc

Some free newspaper readers, reacting to headlines in newspapers and magazines, will swear by God, Allah, Sango or whatever they belief in that Buhari, the presidential aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress will beat Goodluck Jonathan, the Peoples Democratic Party flag bearer silly at poll.

A free newspaper reader at a newsstand at Iyana Ipaja bus-stop in Lagos, south-west Nigeria on Wednesday claimed that Nigeria and Nigerians need change, not aimless continuity.

The reader insisted that Goodluck Jonathan has not delivered democracy dividends on the doorsteps of ordinary Nigerians. He may be wrong, he may be right, even as he insists that Buhari is the man for the presidential job.

In that same newsstand, a self-acclaimed pastor argued that Buhari, who is busy preaching the gospel of  change should first and foremost change his old, analogue ways and manners and conform to a 21^st century man.

The pastor wondered why Buhari is talking about integrity and credibility when his WASC certificate is still suspect, even as he is trying desperately to dodge presidential debate, ahead of the election on the flimsy excuses that he does not trust the media in Nigeria.

These free newspaper readers, who claim to be street parliamentarians are everywhere in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Akwa Ibom, Cross Rover, Kano, Kaduna etc.  If you call most of them, jobless, aimless persons, you may not be totally wrong.  

Next on the line of argument is the INEC PVSc. Even with repeated assurances from Jega and his commissioners that the cards are available in large numbers for collection at various local government offices and wards across the federation, the readers are calling for the head of the INEC chairman

Yesterday evening, I listened to radio program where Jega said point-blank that most Nigerians have not collected their PVCs, even as they are bust lambasting the commission for incompetent.

According to him some 40million PVSc, with multiple registration status have been deleted from the database of the electoral body.

His words: PVCs cards, when inserted into the machine that show white colour simply implies that it is cloned and therefore fake, while those that show red colour are genuine       

But, my very good friend, a free newspaper reader at Board street in Lagos, south-west Nigeria still argue that INEC is not working and should therefore stopped from conducting the forth-coming elections.