All Progressives Congress Research Articles

A Multimodal Study of Selected Campaign Posters of All Progressives Congress Presidential Candidate in Nigerian 2023 General Elections

The relevance of multimodal features of campaign posters in disseminating intended information to the Nigerian electorate during elections is the focus of this research. The study examines six selected political campaign posters of Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2023 General Elections conducted in Nigeria. The posters, technically designed, are analysed with a view to highlighting their visual and linguistic components. The analysis is also intended to determine their effectiveness in persuading the electorate to vote for the candidate. The posters are chosen because they symbolically express the candidate’s and his party’s identity and ideology. The study adopts the social semiotic theory of Kress and van Leeuwen (2006) to analyse data sourced from Facebook and WhatsApp. The data are synthesised based on insights from the adopted theory. The paper reveals that Bola Ahmed Tinubu can disseminate information and project his political ideology on the minds of the electorate through visual and non-visual messages contained in the posters. The study concludes that the campaign posters of Bola Ahmed Tinubu contributed to influencing the decision of some Nigerian electorate to vote for him in the 2023 General Elections.The study recommends that future researchers can investigate the relevance of campaign posters in disseminating intended messages to the electorate in other elections conducted in Nigeria.

3-Player 3-Strategy Nash Equilibruim of Party’s Presidential Primaries in the Build-Up to 2023 General Elections in Nigeria

The research formulated a political game model of All Progressive Congress (APC) Party Contestants for the Presidential Primaries in order to determine the best possible candidate who would be presented by the Party for winning the 2023 General Election in Nigeria. The method of solution involved Nash equilibrium which yielded a pure Nash result of Propaganda, Consultation and Youth mobilization Strategies for Yahaya Bello, Ahmed Bola Tinubu and Yemi Osinbajo respectively. The study concluded that, the outcome of the Party’s primaries which produced Ahmed Bola Tinubu as its flag bearer was consistent with the model’s result. Because, Ahmed Bola Tinubu did a lot of deep consultation with stakeholders while Yahaya Bello’s best response was propaganda as Osibanjo was preferred by the Youth of the Party.

Combating Corruption in Nigeria: A Case Study of Public Prosecution under Buhari’s Administration (2015-2023)

The menace of corruption in Nigeria has lingered on for years, the conscious awareness towards this malady has gained prominence over the years, to the extent that the main opposition party, All Progressive Congress (APC), ascended to power in the 2015 General Elections, emerging victorious at the polls with anti-corruption campaign, echoed by the change mantra. This study dissected the much-anticipated fight against corruption in the eight years of Muhammadu Buhari’s APC led administration; it unravels that the principle The menace of corruption in Nigeria has lingered on for years, the conscious awareness towards this malady has gained prominence over the years, to the extent that the main opposition party, All Progressive Congress (APC), ascended to power in the 2015 General Elections, emerging victorious at the polls with anti-corruption campaign, echoed by the change mantra. This study dissected the much-anticipated fight against corruption in the eight years of Muhammadu Buhari’s APC led administration; it unravels that the principle of rotation of power with its patron-client network and identity politics are enablers of corruption in Nigeria. Similarly, it is posited that plea bargain constitutes a huge hindrance to the successful eradication of corruption in Nigeria, just as the poor reward system for career public office holders constitutes a challenge to the fight against corruption in Nigeria. The study concluded that the Buhari administration’s fight against corruption, although had Nigerians filled with hopes from inception, could not achieve much in the end with the anti-corruption Caesar (Ibrahim Magu) removed in what appears as a power play. We recommend the establishment of institutional mechanisms to prevent corruption, review of reward system for public officers, creation of credit system to facilitate citizens’ immediate access to meeting their needs, prosecution of civil/public servants who are complicit in corrupt practices, and compensation of whistleblowers, among other measures.

Candidacy Endorsement and Rebuttals as Mediated Campaign Strategies in The 2023 Nigerian Election

Endorsements trigger arguments and rebuttals about the relevance of political actors by the spokesmen frontline political parties. Previous linguistic studies have focused more on campaign speeches; little attention has been paid to endorsement as a campaign strategy. This study investigated the endorsement speech of Olusegun Obasanjo (OBJ) and rebuttals by supporting and opposing spokesmen of Labour Party (LP), People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and All Progressive Congress (APC) in Nigerian elections, identifying and analysing the locutionary, illocutionary and Pragmatic strategies. The qualitative design was used. Data comprise purposely selected and transcribed texts from Channels Television (CHNLSTV) interview, moderated by Seun Okinbaloye. Data was downloaded from their YouTube channel Mariana Sbisa’s Speech Act, supported by John Searle’s classification of illocutionary, and the textual part of Mey’s Pragmatic Acts were used as the framework. The locutionary strategies of endorsements and rebuttals in the data were: juxtaposition with alternative facts, conscious denial of position and facts, affirmation of thoughts, representation of opinionated position and counter-position, acceptance of position or facts and attack/defense of personality traits. Three major illocutionary acts: expressive, representative, and directive, were seen. Pragmatic resources such as inference, reference, relevance, metaphor and shared situational knowledge underlined. Expressive was achieved by condoning, criticising, condemning and praising. Representative was constructed by the forces of asserting, accusing, comparing and contrasting or juxtaposing. Directive was justified by defining, declaring, endorsing and analogising. The study concludes that endorsements and rebuttals are the performance ratings of political agents.

Party Politics and National Integration in Nigeria: An Appraisal of All Progressive Congress 2019-2023

This study examined party politics and national integration in Nigeria: an appraisal of All Progressive Congress (APC). It conceptualized political parties and national integration. The study raised two objectives namely: Ascertain how All Progressive Congress (APC) politics has promoted national integration in Nigeria between 2015 and 2023. Determine how All Progressive Congress (APC) politics has undermined national integration in Nigeria. Systems theory was used as the theory for the study. Ex-post facto design was used. Data used for the study were derived through secondary sources. Thematic content analysis was used to analyze the data. The findings of the study show that APC has made some contributions towards national integration in Nigeria. The finding of the study also shows that these efforts have their challenges which militated against them in the realization of their objectives. While the efforts were intended to achieve national integration, solidarity and unity, it ended up creating disunity among the people, and marginalization of one section by the other thereby leading to intense struggle for power between and or among people from different ethnic groups. The study concluded that due to the nature of party politics, APC as a political party has not been able to live up to expectation as a veritable instrument for national integration. Secondly, some of the party leaders are more powerful than the political party itself and as such their selfish personal interest overrides the interest of the party and the nation as the case may be. The study recommended that political parties must run issue-based campaigns devoid of hate speech or disinformation to restore their integrity in the eyes of citizens. Once elected and/ or appointed to political office, party members must follow through on the promises made during the campaign period. Also, political parties must be held accountable for their abuses of the system and failure to represent the interests of the Nigerian people. Keywords: Political Party, Party Politics, National Integration

Tribalism: A Thorny Concern in Nigerian Politics–A Discursive Review and Appraisal

This paper conducts a review and appraisal of discourse surrounding tribalism, which is deeply entrenched in Nigerian politics at different levels of government as the polity of the country has often experienced significant tension along tribal/ethnic lines. Using digital media data, with specific focus on discourses produced during the 2023 general elections in the country, this study reviews and analyses the discourse of tribalism in Nigerian political communication. In an election heavily contested by the All Progressives Congress (APC), the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and the Labour Party (LP), with candidates representing three major ethnic groups in Nigeria involving Yoruba, Hausa, and Igbo respectively, the entrenched nature of the tribalism mindset in the country was fully exposed. Although tribalism in Nigerian politics has been in existence for a long time, it was only recently witnessed on a large scale on social media given that it is the first time that three popular presidential candidates have emerged from the country’s three most popular ethnic groups. Through a multimodal discourse analysis, the study reveals instances of tribalist discourse in the country vis-à-vis the social context and implications for the democracy, national cohesion, and the development of the country.

Youth Political Participation and Party Politics during the 2023 General Elections in Nigeria

The waning of young participation in politics has made the involvement of Nigerian youth in politics a contentious issue since the country's return to democracy on May 29, 1999. Therefore, this study seeks to investigate the level of youth participation at the party level during 2023 general elections in Nigeria. This study used secondary data such as textbooks, Journal articles and online sources while content analysis was used to analyse the data collected. Moreover, this study is situated within the “Sleeping Dog Theory”. The study argues that the African Democratic Congress (ADC) recorded the highest number of youth participation at the party level during the 2023 general elections. Other parties in order of increased youth participation include Action Democratic Party, New Nigeria's People Party (NNPP), Socialist Democratic Party (SDP), Action Alliance (AA) and Labour Party among others. However, Labour Party occupied sixth position, Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) thirteen positions while the All Progressive Congress (APC) fifteen positions. This shows that the three dominant Political parties during the 2023 general elections namely Labour Party, Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressive Congress (APC) were not among the leading political parties that encouraged youth participation at the party level during the 2023 general elections. On the whole, this study recommends among other things that Interparty Advisory Council (IPAC) which is the umbrella body for Political parties in Nigeria should work closely with the various political party leadership on ways to increase youth participation at the party level like the reduction of the party nomination/interest form.
 
 Received: 10 October 2023 / Accepted: 28 December 2023 / Published: 5 January 2024

Investigating the effect of presidential elections, democracy, GDP-oriented macroeconomic policies, and partisanship on the GDP growth rate in Nigeria

This study explores the nexus between political variables, macroeconomic policies, and Nigeria's GDP growth rate from 1970 to 2023. Utilizing a quantitative research methodology, the investigation employs an OLS regression analysis to unravel the relationships shaping the economic landscape of Nigeria. The study identifies partisanship and population growth rate as statistically significant determinants of Nigeria's GDP growth rate. The political party in power, particularly the People's Democratic Party (PDP), positively influences the GDP growth rate compared to the All-Progressives Congress (APC). The years surrounding presidential elections demonstrate increased GDP growth, reflecting heightened economic activities attributed to investor behaviors and coalition group initiatives. Notably, the negative relationship between population growth and GDP growth rate emphasizes the challenges of managing rapid population growth without corresponding economic expansion. The observed positive impact of the PDP on the GDP growth rate accentuates the need for a harmonious political environment aligning with economic development objectives. This study contributes significantly to Nigeria's political economy literature, offering evidence-based insights crucial for strategic decision-making. As Nigeria navigates its political and economic terrain complexities, the study advocates for informed policies that address the identified determinants, fostering a resilient and prosperous future.

INFLUENCE OF PEACEBUILDING STRATEGIES ON INTERNAL DEMOCRACY OF ALL PROGRESSIVES CONGRESS IN NIGERIA

This research looked at the relationship between the All-Progressive Congress's internal democracy in Lagos State, Nigeria, and peacebuilding strategies. To provide direction for the investigation, two hypotheses (tested at the 0.05 level of significance) were established. All political players in the state were included in the population, which was stratified into senatorial districts to provide a sample size of 289 using correlational and descriptive research techniques. Pearson's Product-Moment Correlation Analysis was used to evaluate the data. Findings indicate that there is no significant relationship between peacebuilding strategies in terms of conflict transformation and internal democracy of All Progressives Congress in Lagos State (r = .004, ρ>0.05), and the study also further found that that there is a positive, moderate and significant relationship between peacebuilding strategies in terms of conflict-sensitive policies and internal democracy of All Progressives Congress in Lagos State (r = .537, ρ < 0.05). It is found that internal democracy in political parties has had favourable results in Lagos State.

Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Conduct of 2023 General Elections in Nigeria: A Discourse

The study analyzes the conduct of 2023 general elections in Nigeria. The 2023 general elections were conducted by INEC on 25th February, and March, 18th 2023. INEC was constituted in 1998 by Abdulsalam Abubakar. The roles of INEC are, delimits the country into constituencies for the purpose of electing representatives into government, organizes/conducts elections into various levels of government, registers political parties wishing to contest elections, register voters, recruits, trains and deploys officials to different part of the country to assist in the conduct of elections. The perpetration of electoral violence by desperate politicians, late arrival of electoral materials and some officials of INEC to polling units, malfunctioning of electronic machines in some places and vote buying by politicians, among others were examined by this paper. This paper adopts system theory propounded by Gabriel Almonds, David Easton and Von Bentallaffy. This study uses the qualitative method of research, relying exclusively on secondary source of data such as textbooks, newspapers, journals, magazines, among others. The data gathered were summarized. The findings of the study shows that the presidential election conducted on 25th February by INEC was won by Bola Ahmed Tinubu of All progressive congress (APC).In the Governorship election held on March 18th 2023, APC won in 16 States, PDP won in 10 States, NNPP won in One State while Labour party won in Abia State. The paper recommends that; INEC, politicians and the electorates should adhere strictly to the laws, rules and regulations guiding the conduct of general elections in Nigeria. INEC should make adequate preparations before embarking on future general elections.

A critical discourse analysis of some selected 2019 Nigerian presidential election campaign advertisements on social media

Political campaign advertisements are one of the mediums where the electorates hope to get the right information to help them make a choice before an election. The study explored the lexico-syntactic patterns, discourse strategies and how they were used to create ideologies in the 2019 Presidential campaign advertisements. The study adopts the theoretical framework of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) by Van Dijk called socio-cognitive model and his (2000) model on principles that express ideological stances. Five campaign advertisements were purposively selected for analysis from the following social media platforms: Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter and also the following media outlets punch.com, nairaland.com, to mention but a few. The campaign advertisements chosen featured the two major candidates, Atiku Abubakar of the PDP (Peoples Democratic Party) and Muhamadu Buhari of the APC (All Progressives Congress) in the 2019 Presidential elections. The study revealed that the campaign advertisements chosen used discourse markers that emphasized ideologies like; APC is a haven for corrupt Nigerians, Atiku is a thief, Buhari and Atiku do not care about the poor, Buhari is incorruptible, are among other ideologies that the campaign advertisements tried to portray. The study submits that discourse was negative especially in the presentation of the ‘out group’ (the political opponents) and that the ideology of the text creators was a very strong force in all the texts analyzed. Therefore, the electorates need to be more critical in reading these presidential campaign advertisements before forming their opinions and taking actions, in order to deepen our democracy.

Textual Analysis of Acceptance and Declaration Speeches of Selected 2023 Presidential Candidates in Nigeria

Language remains a great asset to its users; its indispensability in politics is quite remarkable. This study examined how the English language has been utilized by 2023 presidential candidates in Nigeria. The researcher examined the acceptance and declaration speeches of selected 2023 presidential candidates-Ahmed Tinubu of All Progressive Congress (APC), Atiku Abubakar of Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), and Peter Obi of Labour Party (LP). The study was anchored on the theoretical framework of cohesion. However, the approach adopted was a comparative study. The researcher compared how the three candidates used the English language in the presentation of their acceptance and declaration speeches to find out the cohesive devices that were employed to assure the people that their multifarious problems would be solved. The researcher identified the grammatical, lexical and clausal relations in consonance with their functions/roles in the political speeches examined. The present research was deemed necessary as the researcher discovered that nobody (as of the time of this study) has done a textual analysis of the acceptance speeches of these presidential candidates. It was found that the three candidates used cohesive devices as their campaign tools. The researcher also found out that clausal relations employed in the texts were internal procedures and interpretations which helped the speakers in achieving both registeral and generic coherence.

An Exposè on Encumbrance in Political Parties' Financing and Electoral Credibility in Nigeria

Purpose: This study examines political party financing and voting behaviour in north-central Nigeria, with particular focus on the level of financing in the region, the underlining motivations for such financing, and insight into the benefits or otherwise of political party financing on governance and development in the region vis-à-vis electoral process credibility. Theoretical framework: Electoral window in Nigeria political terrain is conceived by the elite as investment venture of which profit is to be maximized by means of exchange of electorates voting power for money, entrenchment of poverty and by extension hold the electoral system to hostage via manipulation, corruption and election irregularities and weak judicial system. According to the investment and social exchange theory, the political class are to business of investment for profit and exchange of services (voting power/vote buying) transaction politics for elite interest aggregation and articulation. Design/Methodology/Approach: The study uses using survey and in-depth interview. The research work was carried out across three dominant political parties in north-central Nigeria, namely the All Progressive Congress (APC), People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and Labour Party (LP), in the north-central geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The research follows three stages of random sampling. Stage one involves the random sampling or selection of two local governments across Benue, the Plateau, and Nassarawa, totaling six units of study. Stage two involves the random selection of two council wards from each of the six (6) identified focus areas, for a total of twelve (12) council wards. Stage three involves the selection of 18 respondents from each unit sampled, making a total of 216 respondents for the study. The study made use of descriptive statistics (Graphs) to analyse the data obtained from a field survey and interview analysed thematically. However, 200 questionnaires were valid for analysis after two weeks of administering the questionnaire. Findings: Findings reveal that unregulated political party financing undermines Nigeria electoral process vis-à-vis electoral credibility. It promotes political patronage and clientele networks; thus, political or electoral funders control and select politicians, thereby sacrificing good governance and development. Excessive and unregulated financing breaks the link between the electorate and politicians, leading to unequal participation, making it difficult for new political forces to emerge. Politicians with large resources often give preferential treatment to their backers, and politicians abuse their access to state resources to maintain power which in turns undermines the electoral process due to transactional (party with big money bags wins’ election) political nature in Nigeria. Research, Practical & Social implications: This study shows that political elites has weaponized transactional politics and corruption to hold on to power and by extension undermines the electoral process which in turns gave rise to bad governance, corruption and poverty in Nigeria and Nigeria is currently suffering from institutional fragility (INEC) and if proactive measures is not taken to suppress these menace in Nigeria political landscape, the country is heading to banana republic. This study helps policymakers to be in the know of the impending disaster that awaits Nigeria in the near future if proactive measures are not taking to quell this menace of transactional politics. Originality/Value: The findings suggest several consequences for the electoral processes in Nigeria and by extension Africa on how eexcessive political party financing affects the performances of eventual winners and electoral outcomes and this transactional politics does not does not benefit the north-central zone as it concerns service delivery oriented governance and development.

Political confrontations and disagreements in the Nigerian Government’s COVID-19 response

The COVID-19 outbreak has led to various interventions and policies from governments around the world, including Nigeria. However, Nigeria’s response was laden with political interests, confrontation and disagreements from various blocs of interest. Therefore, this study aims to examine various phenomena of political confrontation and disagreement during COVID-19 intervention. This study uses qualitative methods. Data were obtained through qualitative secondary data and analyzed thematically. The results of this study indicate that the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressive Congress (APC) are the two political parties that engage in the most political confrontation and disagreement. This study found that conflicting interests also occurred between the government and several interest groups regarding the import of foreign health workers and the distribution of COVID-19 assistance. Similarly, disagreements also ensued between the federal government and some subnational governments over their refusal to acknowledge the existence and/or severity of COVID-19. This study concludes that political conflicts and disagreements during COVID-19 in Nigeria were caused by government policies and interventions that could not be separated from competing interests and needs of the political, business, and professional elite.

Rhetoric and Political Power: Analyzing Language and Persuasion in Political Discourse

This abstract presents a research paper that examines the pragmatic influence of rhetorical strategies in political speeches. The paper acknowledges that language manipulation by politicians can result in threats and hate speeches, posing a challenge to peace, unity, and progress. The theoretical framework used is Fairclough's Model and Analytical Framework, and the methodology employed is qualitative research. The data for the study were collected from print media advertisements in Nigerian newspapers during the period of political campaigning for the March 2015 general elections. The data primarily consist of campaign speeches delivered at rallies by politicians from the Peoples' Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Congress (APC). Content analysis is used to analyze the data in line with the research framework. The study emphasizes the contextual nature of rhetoric, highlighting the importance of the speaker-audience relationship within the broader sociopolitical context. The conclusion suggests that rhetorical strategy is a significant aspect of political analysis and can contribute to understanding the operation of political power in society.

Àwa L’ókàn: When the blood of Jesus is not thick enough to bond his body

In this article is examined the now famous political slogan particularly in the South-Western region of Nigeria: àwa l’ókàn [it is our turn] as grounded on political injustice and not resonating with competence as claimed. This has become critical, because it has generated heated debate among Christians across denominational lines. I traced the popularity of the slogan to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who claimed that, in the 2023 elections, the office of the president of Nigeria should be zoned to the South-Western geo-political zone, and then to him personally; hence Emi l’ókàn [it is my turn]. The theoretical argument in this article is that, although Christians are saved to live differently from the world, they still have critical roles to play in political affairs in ways that are consistent with their faith. The article used both primary and secondary sources that consist of books, articles, personal interviews and the social media. It discovered that the South-Western region has had at least a 15-year stint in the Nigerian presidency since 1999, the South-Southern region, eight years and the South-Eastern region, zero years. In addition, the article found out that the slogan, Emi l’ókàn, has resulted in theological disagreements which are not healthy for Christian unity and purpose in a multi-religious society such as Nigeria. It concluded that ‘àwa l’ókàn politics is based on ethnic solidarity rather than oneness in Christ. This position has implications for the Christian body, because preference for ethnicity over justice and fairness, which are Christian principles, challenges sound Christian theo-political theory.Contribution: This article is interdisciplinary in nature. It brings together theology, ethnicity and politics, and argues that these disciplines are dynamic. But in a situation in which conflict of interest arises, it is argued that Christian ethics should guide in taking a moral decision to abide by the principle of oneness in Christ (Eph 2:11–22).

THE 2022 HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY PRIMARIES AND CHALLENGES OF INTERNAL PARTY DEMOCRACY IN NIGERIA

This article examined what happened at the state party primaries when political parties elected their delegates and candidates to vie for state Houses of Assembly seats for the 2023 general elections in Nigeria. Successful aspirants to state Houses of Assembly are expected in the next four years to make laws on matters that are closest to the grass root. The article however limited its examination of state Assembly primaries to the two dominant political parties – the APC (All Progressive Congress) and the PDP (Peoples Democratic Party) because as of January 2022, these two parties, of the currently registered 18 political parties in Nigeria, controlled 92.8% of the entire state Assembly seats in the 36 states of the Federation. It was established from findings that the problems of imposition of candidates and sponsorship by godfathers characterized the conduct and outcome of party primaries at this level, the extant legal instruments that supposedly ruled against such infractions notwithstanding. This article, by providing a background to this study, established with examples that these problems have existed within the Nigerian political space and in party primaries in particular, during the first second, and third Republics respectively. This creates challenges of accountability when aspirants emerging through this process are elected into office. The article concluded with recommendations on what should be done to limit or eliminate the control of governors, money bags, and godfathers, especially at the level of state Assembly primaries. The emphasis in the recommendations was placed amongst others on the rank-and-file card-carrying members being attracted and retained, as strong financial members of their parties, committed to the party’s ideology and programs, and being made therefore to own the party and its structures.

Between the Star Boy and the City Boy: Humour, Sarcasm and Rhetoric-Induced (De)Marketing in a Nigerian Presidential Primary Election

Beyond the political communication context, non-verbal communication cues are so potent that their interpretations may outweigh the intentionality of the interlocutors that produce the cues. This study analyses the communicative and rhetorical strategies in seven purposively selected political memes created by Nigerians before Nigeria’s ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) held her presidential primary election ahead of the country’s 2023 Presidential Election. The study focused on how the memes marketed and de-marketed the candidacies of Nigeria’s Vice-President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo (the star boy), and Former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (the city boy). Driven by the set-up-incongruity resolution theory of humour, rhetorical framing and socio-semiotic model for visual analysis, the study identified two general themes and five sub-themes from the memes. In the first theme— collective framing of political actors—, Tinubu and Osinbajo were framed as combating competitors. For the second general theme— individuated framing of political gladiators—, sub-themes such as Osinbajo as a kind politician, Tinubu as a kingmaker, Tinubu as a thug and Osinbajo as a betrayer dominated. The study recommends that to establish a better democratic atmosphere in Nigeria, political stakeholders should emphasise accurate civic education on the Nigerian public space and stress pertinent campaign issues instead of irrelevancies.

Àwa L’ókàn: When the blood of Jesus is not thick enough to bond his body

In this article is examined the now famous political slogan particularly in the South-Western region of Nigeria: àwa l’ókàn [it is our turn] as grounded on political injustice and not resonating with competence as claimed. This has become critical, because it has generated heated debate among Christians across denominational lines. I traced the popularity of the slogan to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who claimed that, in the 2023 elections, the office of the president of Nigeria should be zoned to the South-Western geo-political zone, and then to him personally; hence Emi l’ókàn [it is my turn]. The theoretical argument in this article is that, although Christians are saved to live differently from the world, they still have critical roles to play in political affairs in ways that are consistent with their faith. The article used both primary and secondary sources that consist of books, articles, personal interviews and the social media. It discovered that the South-Western region has had at least a 15-year stint in the Nigerian presidency since 1999, the South-Southern region, eight years and the South-Eastern region, zero years. In addition, the article found out that the slogan, Emi l’ókàn , has resulted in theological disagreements which are not healthy for Christian unity and purpose in a multi-religious society such as Nigeria. It concluded that ‘àwa l’ókàn politics is based on ethnic solidarity rather than oneness in Christ. This position has implications for the Christian body, because preference for ethnicity over justice and fairness, which are Christian principles, challenges sound Christian theo-political theory. Contribution: This article is interdisciplinary in nature. It brings together theology, ethnicity and politics, and argues that these disciplines are dynamic. But in a situation in which conflict of interest arises, it is argued that Christian ethics should guide in taking a moral decision to abide by the principle of oneness in Christ (Eph 2:11–22).

Effects of Money Politics on Party Primaries in Nigerian 2019 General Election: Reflections on All Progressives Congress (APC) and People's Democratic Party (PDP)

Money politics has become an acceptable norm and a part of Nigerian political culture before and after the conduct of general elections since the resurgence of the democratic rule in the Fourth Republic (1999). The nature and dimension of money politics have taken a new picture in Nigerian politics during the party primaries in preparation for the 2019 General Election, particularly between the two major contending parties; the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who were involved in excessive use of money unprecedented in the history of Nigerian politics during the party primaries in September and October 2018. This work investigated the role of money in determining the outcome of party primaries in Nigeria in the ruling APC and the major opposition PDP and how it will affect the General Election in 2019. The research used a quantitative method of data collection and analysis. Both the primary and secondary sources were used during the conduct of the research. The data obtained were grouped in a thematic form where a simple tabular percentage was used for interpretations and results. The research discovered that there was an extraordinary deployment of money from the state-owned resources by politicians to arrest their campaign expenses and political ambition. In the process, vote-buying and excessive spending violated the electoral process and deprived the electorates of getting credible candidates in the parties' primaries. The research recommends that there is a need for a more aggressive and severe sanction on all politicians that are found in this evil act. The work also realized the serious need for massive public enlightenment on the evil of money politics.