By Obi Nwakanma
The election season geared
towards electing a new president for Nigeria is now upon us. In about two
weeks, according to the rules of the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC),
the official bar on campaigns will be lifted, the whistle will then blow for
the parties now currently on their marks, to take off. This campaign season is more a mile race than a dash. For those
who do long distance races, they understand that they must pace themselves:
know when to conserve energy, keep an even pace and stay in the race, do not
lag, pick up speed towards the final laps, and end with a blinding finish.
No one runs the Mile race as though they were doing the 100 Meters dash. Sprinters, especially very experienced ones, learn very quickly, the strength of their opponents, their speech, and most importantly, how to bank against the direction of the wind, or sail with it.
The coming political campaigns remind me of Stanley Ngwaba, that elegant stallion on the tracks, do the 400 meters race on the “Lower Fields,” at the Government College Umuahia, to win the Victor Ludorum during the Inter House Sports Competition.
