The Executive Director, Development Specs Academy, and a political analyst, Professor Okey Ikechukwu, has urged political parties and candidates to make the forthcoming election campaigns about Nigeria, with emphasis on security, responsible citizenship and responsible leadership.
He said this following the official commencement of election campaigns ahead of the 2027 general elections in Nigeria.
Speaking with ARISE NEWS on Tuesday, Professor Ikechukwu said Nigerians should assess the track record, integrity and service delivery of candidates before deciding who to support at the polls.
“Campaigns should be about Nigeria. That means when you speak of Nigeria, you’re talking about security, responsible citizenship, and responsible leadership,” he said.
“In preparing for this election, Nigerians should sit down quietly and calibrate those holding these offices and the parties to which they belong, asking themselves specific questions: Have these people delivered on these offices? If they haven’t, is it the fault of those occupying them or their party? Whichever it is, the answer should guide their vote.
“For those priming to take over from whoever is in power, Nigerians should ask themselves three distinct questions:
What is the personal track record of these individuals as credible persons who have served the public with distinction and integrity? At the level of public engagement, what good can be traced to them? What makes you think that if Nigeria is handed over to them, they will do a good job? Those are the issues,” he added.
He said voters should not allow campaign spending to determine their choice, citing the Osun State election as an example where voters protected their votes despite substantial sums of money allegedly being circulated. Professor Ikechukwu urged Nigerians to examine the service delivery records of those they elected four years ago, compare them with the records of those seeking to displace them, and then decide where their votes should go and why.
“As for the campaign, whether they are given money or not, I’ve always maintained my position: collect the money if you must, but vote for who you think will deliver value. That’s what happened in Osun. I understand there is clear evidence that substantial sums of money moved around, but those who moved all that money lost. They lost dramatically.
“The interesting thing is that Nigerians should be taught three things: Look at the record of service delivery of those you elected four years ago. Look at the record of those threatening to displace them. Ask yourself: Where should my vote go, and what is the reason?”
Speaking on the impact of official statements by political leaders on electoral conduct, particularly President Bola Tinubu’s call for peaceful and transparent elections, Professor Ikechukwu said such declarations would have little impact unless they translated into the conduct of political actors on the ground.
“First, I don’t see the need to impose any extra rules. There are already rules of good behavior in elections. The statements attributed to the President are not new; we’ve heard them over and over from previous presidents and former heads of state. Peace accords—we’ve seen all kinds of peace accords signed. I am familiar with the text, but I usually make a distinction between an official statement (usually a prepared speech by a leader) and the political economy on the ground everywhere. While I’m saying it’s good he said that as a leader, we must not ride on it as a stopper,” he stressed.
On the Osun election, Professor Ikechukwu said the outcome demonstrated that the will of voters could not be easily overridden, despite the deployment of political influence and resources.
“The will of a people who have seen where their interests lie cannot be violated. If Nigerians are resolved, the issue is money. If it turns out that despite money and more money, people still make deliberate decisions, it becomes a different ballgame,” he remarked.
Speaking on the economic hardship facing Nigerians, Professor Ikechukwu urged political candidates to be honest about the country’s food crisis and present practical, long-term solutions rather than quick fixes. He identified insecurity, particularly banditry in major food-producing areas, as a major factor contributing to food scarcity, while calling for targeted food procurement and greater local food production.
He also said candidates must explain how they intend to address the rising costs of fuel, transportation, housing and education, warning that there is no easy solution to the country’s economic challenges.
“Millions of Nigerians are clearly struggling with the cost of food, transport, housing, and basic services. What specifically should candidates be required to tell voters about this?
“First of all, be honest about it. There isn’t enough food in the country because for more than six years, the places that used to supply our food have been taken over by bandits. So it’s not this government alone. Agriculture is shut down, the Middle Belt—the food basket—all of them face food scarcity.
“Secondly, the remedy will not lie in quick fixes. What we need to do first, in the short term, is secure targeted food procurement. Second, everybody who has a piece of land around where they live should plant something. Third, we are not coming in so that once we step in, the next day you start celebrating. These are the problems I want us to solve together. But for both the government and the opposition, there’s no easy way out of this matter,” he noted.
On government performance claims, Professor Ikechukwu criticised the focus on headline figures rather than their actual impact, arguing that economic stability means little if living standards and investment do not improve.
“That’s why there’s a challenge with communication when government communication focuses on ‘this is what we’ve done,’ not ‘this is the impact’ or ‘this is what is not remedied.’ The narrative has become fundamentally dishonest, and you can’t blame them; they inherited the criteria for interpretation. When you see that stability cannot drive investment, cannot improve the level of living, and then they’re telling you, ‘What is wrong with you, can’t you see we’ve stabilized the naira?’ Have mercy on yourself! You were earning 200 naira before, now your salary is stabilized at 7 naira; you can’t pay your bills, but you’re stable. That’s what you’re being told.”
Professor Ikechukwu said Nigeria does not lack good policies or capable people, but argued that the problem begins when policies are designed to serve private interests rather than the public good.
“There’s no shortage of good policies; there’s no shortage of people. Policy is now an instrument for robbery—that’s actually the most accurate way to look at it. We make a policy that suits us because we’re the ones in charge. You pass the laws you like. That’s what’s happening,” he argued.
Sharing his thoughts on what Nigerians should demand to curb insecurity, Professor Ikechukwu said Nigerians should demand concrete action from government, stressing that communities occupied by criminal groups must be recovered and their original residents allowed to return.
“What should Nigerians demand? The government should end it. There are communities today that are occupied—some of them for five years—by unknown quantities who drove away the original occupants. Those people should be driven away,” he stressed.
On what candidates should offer voters on insecurity, the political analyst said they must make specific commitments to end kidnapping and banditry, backed by clear action.
“You need not tell us the method, but those are declarations. The core economic interests around criminality in Nigeria are managed by the elite, presenting a problem. It’s important that a leader finds a way to navigate that, making very specific proclamations, and knowing how to go about it—not by talking on television.”
Addressing the use of ethnic and religious sentiments in politics, Professor Ikechukwu said the issue could be overcome, arguing that religion itself was not the problem, but rather people’s behaviour and interpretation.
“It is possible for Nigerians to escape religious issues; it’s been done. Abiola came on a Muslim-Muslim ticket, and because he was so popular, nobody even thought about it—he was loved all over the country. So we can’t just pick religion and say it is an evil on its own. It’s people’s behavior and interpretation,” he explained.
Urging political parties to make their manifestos meaningful, Professor Ikechukwu said candidates should specify what they intend to do and take their programmes to the grassroots, with party stakeholders engaging voters at the ward, local government and council levels. He said large rallies alone do not amount to genuine political mobilisation and called for deeper engagement with the people.
“Manifestos should be the ultimate checklist for voters. Candidates should specify what they’re going to do in specific areas.
“Where this might be different is that you have to get all party stakeholders at every level—councilor level, local government level—go and discuss the manifesto as a narration to the people. Today, when we say the campaigns have begun, you’ll see the big men arrive in a state, go to the stadium, and that’s not campaign—the people in the stadium are hired, most of them attending every campaign because they expect to get a new t-shirt, particularly the organizers.”
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