As the general elections draw closer, politicians are getting desperate to get more people to cast their votes in their favour. Last week, I witnessed an amazing drama unfold as a politician tried frantically to convince my neighbour to cast his vote for a party. When the politician realized that his effort was getting him nowhere, he decided to use the power in his pocket. He brought out a bundle of N200 notes and dangled it in my neighbour’s face, basically the way you would dangle some bait to an animal you are trying to catch.

“How much is your vote?” he asked, with a deceptive smile on his face. My neighbour hesitated for a moment, and then he grabbed a piece of paper and began to scribble down something. When he finished writing, he handed the piece of paper to the politician saying, “This is the value of my vote.” The politician went through the paper briefly and then squeezed and threw it away, in my direction. He hurried away, saying that my neighbour wasn’t being rational. My neighbour, realizing I was watching, picked up the paper and said, waving the paper at me, “Am I being irrational?” I collected the paper and took a quickly look at it.

He had written on the paper the breakdown of his family’s expenses, which the government (according to him) had so far failed to provide or make available for its citizens. He then multiplied everything by four (4) years. Something like this: Security - N20,000 per month x 12 months x 4 years = N960,000 Generator - N40,000 per 2 years x 2 = N80,000 Fuel for generator - N1,000 per day x 365 days x 4 years = N1,460,000 Potable water - N500 per day x 365 days x 4 years = N730,000 Healthcare Insurance - N10,000 per month x 12 months x 4 years = N480,000 Education - N5,000 per month x 12 months x 4 years = N240,000 Housing - N500,000 per year x 4 years = N2,000,000 Total - N5,950,000 (five million nine hundred and fifty thousand naira) “Well,” he explained as I continued to stare at his breakdown, “if asking for the basic necessities of life is not being rational, I wonder what is rational?” “I wasn’t trying to be difficult,” he continued.

“I believe this is a modest breakdown of expenses considering I have a wife and a kid. If you have a larger family, the value of your vote may be much higher than this,” he concluded. So, my dear friend, if you want to sell your vote, I won’t say “don’t.” But, be like my neighbour. Make sure it is “worth its weight in gold.” (Inspired by a true story) Wish Nigeria the Best of Leaders Through a Free and Fair Election. Have a Peaceful Election! Dr. Aminu, Mamuda