AMERICAN ELECTIONS AND LESSONS FOR NIGERIA

JOHN ALECHENU,  who recently returned from the United States where he covered the American elections, reports that there are a lot of lessons to be learnt by Nigerians, especially in tolerating opposing views

The American elections have come and gone but the lessons therein remain. There is a lot, politicians and citizens across Africa-especially those in Nigeria, can learn from the elections which were preceded by a hard fought- almost bitter issue-based campaigns. The campaigns brought out the best of Republican Challenger, Mitt Romney and eventual winner, President Barack Obama.

With billions of private dollars spent on campaigns, the presidential election, by most accounts, was the most expensive in recent American history. The expenses did not go into vote buying or importation of arms to suppress opponents.

Most of the funds went into television and radio advertisement placements as well as the organisation of campaign events.

Supporters of both candidates were united in their desire to see a better, stronger and more prosperous America. The only difference was how to pursue and achieve these lofty objectives.

At various campaign offices visited, officials young and old and with different racial backgrounds went about their duties with zeal.

In Janesville, Wisconsin home of Republican Vice-Presidential candidate, Paul Ryan for example, the Romney/Ryan Campaign had their office located not too far away from the Obama campaign office.

Volunteers, who were eager to speak to journalists talked with passion and conviction about their candidates and their vision for a greater nation.

A senior citizen, Debb Thomason, a Republican volunteer for the Romney/Ryan ticket, said the Obama-led Democratic Party had led the nation away from the cardinal principles America was founded upon.

According to her, the constitution is clear about providing every citizen an equal opportunity to pursue his/her dreams.

Thomason said, 'It (Constitution) says life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It didn't say government is going to give it to you. It says you are going to pursue it. The two parties to me right now are very apart to what happens to me as an individual.

'The core of our constitution and the declaration of Independence, I believe in a conservative supreme court. I believe the court is there to interpret the law not to make new laws that are the function of the legislature. When you appoint activist judges you are by-passing the legislature.'

Seventy-eight-year-old Wanda, a volunteer for the Obama/Biden campaign, sees things differently.

According to her, the Republicans don't care about the poor and the vulnerable.

She said, 'We are working so many shifts at a time sometimes three hours, sometimes four hours a day. This last four days, including Tuesday which is election day, we are volunteering all day simply because we want Obama and our democrats to win.

'They believe in the poor and the working people and for the Republicans, their issue is just about abortion and religion.

'Otherwise, they are mostly people with a lot of money and they don't seem to care as much for the poor as the democrats do.

'Obama could have done more than he has done in the last four years but they didn't let him.

'Right from the beginning of the day, he was elected, Republicans-many of them signed a pledge to make sure he could not get anything passed or do anything because they did not want him to have a second term.

'We were all factory people, actually my father worked in a factory, my mother worked in a factory, my husband worked in a factory, I worked in a factory only I happen to be in the office.'

A volunteer for an election support group, Wisconsin Jobs, Ms. Serena Adams, who was knocking on doors with her 10-year-old daughter in tow, said her goal and that of members of her team; was to get people to go out and perform their civic duties.

She said, 'Regardless of who they are voting for, I just want people to go out and vote.'

Adams argued that people lose the right to complain when government fails to meet its obligations when they do not go out and vote for the change they are clamouring for.

She was open about the fact that she was a democrat but that the campaign was to get supporters of the Democratic and Republican parties to come out and vote on election day.

Campaigns across the nation were conducted with outmost decorum. Those with opposing views, who desired to attend campaigns, were neither harassed nor prevented from expressing their opinions.

At an Obama campaign event at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, supporters trooped out and lined up to enter the event centre as early as 7am for an event which was scheduled to commence at 3pm with the President in attendance.

Apart from regular policemen and secret service agents with regular side arms which were in their holsters all the time, there were no AK-47 trotting-policemen or soldiers in sight.

Apart from police patrol vehicles and fire fighting engines, (vehicles), ambulances and Para-medics, there were no armoured personnel carriers or tanks.

A look around for armed thugs also proved abortive as a lone protester, who could be a Republican or even an individual without party affiliation, stood in a walking distance from the entrance into the hall, holding up placard with the inscription: 'Obama tell us the truth about Libya.'

He was obviously referring to the controversy before and after the attack on the American Embassy in Bengazi where four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens, were killed.

The attack on the US embassy and killings were made a campaign issue. While the Obama administration said it responded appropriately based on information available to it, the Republicans accused it of failing to act and thus demonstrated a lack of capacity to protect Americans serving abroad.

No one, be they Obama supporters or policemen on duty, gave him more than a glance as they filed past to secure space in the event centre.

There was a separate entrance gate for accredited journalists from all over the world who were searched and cleared to enter the hall. The separate gate as one volunteer explained, was to enable security personnel properly scrutinise the various types of working equipment being brought in.

Of the hundreds of reporters who gathered for the event, no reporter or camera man was manhandled or prevented from performing his/her duties not minding the fact that the most powerful man on the face of the earth was attending the function in person.

Both President Obama and Romney recognised the supremacy of the ordinary American voter as they campaigned hard across the country to solicit for votes.

They did not rely on the spirited efforts by volunteers who made phone calls and others who knocked on doors; they took their campaigns even to areas where they enjoyed considerable support. They took nothing for granted. Even on election day, Romney was on the campaign trail as he made personal appeals to voters to come out and vote for him.

Obama, who had an edge being an incumbent, shed a tear at a campaign event as he spoke to supporters to show how important their votes were to him returning to office to leave behind a legacy.

Events on election day were even more instructive. Voters turned out in their large numbers, even in parts of Florida, Washington and other areas hard hit by Hurricane Sandy. Ballot boxes were left intact as voters filed in to vote knowing their votes would count.

People went about their everyday activities after voting. Some even went back to work as the nation was not shut down with the declaration of a national holiday or road blocks manned by armed security officials.

America, a multi-racial and multi-religious nation of more than 300 million people was able to take advantage of technology to ensure that citizens were kept informed about developments.

The media were also allowed to play its constitutionally-approved roles of informing, educating and enlightening the public. The world was informed about who won and who lost through a private media outfit, the Cable News Network which announced results which it said were based on 'projections' received from electoral officers on the ground.

The interesting thing about it was the fact that the people believed it more largely due to the fact that it was not as it were a 'government' establishment and that it has built a positive reputation over the years. Other media outfits also made similar announcements.

The synergy between the electorate and election managers is worthy of emulation. At every turn, election officials did not hesitate to explain procedures to would-be-voters.

Were there challenges? Of course, there were reported cases of machine malfunction and people having to wait in long winding queues for their turn to cast their ballot.

Obama in his victory said the situation was 'unacceptable' and had to be 'fixed.'

Romney accepted his defeat, congratulated the winner, prayed for the success of the winner and urged all Americans to support him. Obama was magnanimous in victory as he offered a hand of fellowship to Romney, who only 24 hours earlier was his bitter rival.