The source for "God when" in African Politics. 

Written by Victor Odemena

It's election season and there are hopeful facial expressions in the land. The people of the country are getting excited about the new candidates that emerged to run for positions at the different levels of government. Some citizens brim with hope, while others, disillusioned, resign themselves to another cycle of waiting and hoping for change to come.

It's time for the manifestos to be read. With a lot of hope, citizens collectively take note of the time it airs on their local TV channels and radio channels. The big boys want to stream it while those who can't afford to purchase power concede to hearing the soon-to-be, subjectively tainted, gist. 

By definition, manifestos are a set of goals agreed upon by a political party, encompassing their policies and the implementations they want to propose. Their purpose is to outline the potential of what many consider ideal, yet manifestos often fail to materialize. In terms of structure, it is similar to African education. They are both made up of many theories, promising on paper, but neither holds significant weight when it comes to practicality. 

The first candidate, with his belly reaching out to his arm as he holds out his manifesto, reads out his manifesto. He paints a picture of a utopian society very far from our present reality. It sounds like a nearly perfect system that works for an already developed society. He explains it's process with so much confidence, if you weren't listening in-between the lines, you'd think he was your melanin Messiah.  Despite attempts by the opposition to poke holes in his vision, the candidate remains steadfast, leaving the audience mesmerized by the allure of his words.

The second candidate, dressed with a subtle smirk on his face, his chin up and shoulder high, walks to the center of the stage with confidence so much that you'd think his first words would be “I've won”. He starts his manifesto with the events which had happened in the previous presidential term. He highlights the goals set by the previous administration and states how much of it was completed. To our surprise, he mentions that half of the goals set by the previous term holders were completed, attributing the lack of recognition to economic hardships which overshadowed the achievements. Then he went on to propose how we could solve the rest of the goals together and thereafter achieve his new definition of what an ideal society looks like.  He spoke so eloquently, it was obvious he had a team behind him that was thorough in research. 

People cheered in excitement after listening to both speakers. There were citizens for and against each of them because of their different perspectives. Just as young women may roll their eyes at seemingly perfect couples on Instagram, the gen z political enthusiasts had many “God when” moments.  

As the audience listened to the candida

tes' speeches, a collective thought echoed through the room: “Maybe these are the leaders of tomorrow we've been looking forward to.”

One thing people failed to realize was that they felt the same way this time, four years ago. Are we holding on to hope so dearly that we fall into the same cycle of trusting words penned on paper? 

Or are we just expecting too much? 

In the end, the question remains: are manifestos genuine declarations of intent or merely elaborate marketing campaigns?