contribute usefully if you can, we are debating issues but this may be beyond your comprehension. as anyone who can read a little can see, my vote lies with Yar'Adua for now, he is the best chance in a group of imperfect choices.

debosky:

who is to provide this alternative? Is it Utomi with no structure and Okotie with no party?

even Utomi for all he has said, hasn't said anything about his party's ideology, its all a case of 'vote Pat Utomi', what does the party stand for?

Do we blame them? How easy do you think it will be to put up a party structure when everyone knows it will take a massive modern day 10th wonder of the world to unseat the incumbent PDP rigging machine?

Even "established" parties like the AD and ANPP are struggling to field consensus candidates who still stand no chance against those who did not even bother to turn up for pre-election debates knowing fully well they had been "anointed" by "God" already.

They should start by putting up the structure.
Not having the structure will not cause them to overcome the alleged rigging machine.

that is no excuse - the rigging machine not withstanding, parties like AC have sprung up, even ANPP is still is strong in some locations, as well as DPP, PPA and others. If you cannot inspire people to join you and build party structures now, why should we support them to be leaders?

they should not wake up in the 11th hour and form a party just to be registered to contest. What they are doing now is what they should have started 4 years ago so we can take them seriously now. build a party, get recognition, then votes will come.

Seun, that structure requires money.
Do you know how much the PDP alone is worth?

Winning (s)elections in nigeria is a cash and carry game. You spend money to gain access to even more money. The likes of Okotie and Utomi do not have access to the treasury.

that is a feeble and untenable excuse. Harry Akande ( a prominent bizman) is the financier of the ANPP. He is not PDP so he is not in govt or getting govt support. If the likes of Utomi cannot get people like that to support his cause, how does he intend to win?

We all know money is needed, he should use his contacts in the diaspora and so on to raise funds. that is not a good enough excuse. well meaning fellows like yourself can make your donations

debosky:

that is a feeble and untenable excuse. Harry Akande ( a prominent businessman) is the financier of the ANPP. He is not PDP so he is not in govt or getting govt support. If the likes of Utomi cannot get people like that to support his cause, how does he intend to win?

We all know money is needed, he should use his contacts in the diaspora and so on to raise funds. that is not a good enough excuse. well meaning fellows like yourself can make your donations

How many Harry Akande's do we have? Where is Utomi going to raise money from? From those who already have Obasanjo in their pockets and are more interested in maintaining the status quo in their own interests?

How much are you willing to donate and when are you likely to match the spending power of the PDP?

you should direct the question at yourself first.

these people wax eloquently about all these things they can achieve - if in a population of 140million (and God knows how many millions outside) you cannot mobilise people to contribute (100 naira from 10million folk is 1 billion)

Utomi claims to have excellent contacts in the diaspora, and folk willing to call home to mobilise '20million votes' for him, if those folk contributed as well, he should have enough to run his campaign, all these excuses don't wash for me. bottom line is this: if you do not make yourself known, you will not be voted for.

they are all a penis (patience enthrones nice investement sensibly), a pussy - (partially using sate security in yankee), a modernised idiot (in dire increase of tities).

debosky:

you should direct the question at yourself first.

these people wax eloquently about all these things they can achieve - if in a population of 140million (and God knows how many millions outside) you cannot mobilise people to contribute (100 naira from 10million folk is 1 billion)

Utomi claims to have excellent contacts in the diaspora, and folk willing to call home to mobilise '20million votes' for him, if those folk contributed as well, he should have enough to run his campaign, all these excuses don't wash for me. bottom line is this: if you do not make yourself known, you will not be voted for.

Let us even take a step back for a second. How much does it cost to run a campaign in Ghana, Togo, Benin Republic?
Is the reason our political system is awash with so much really because politics is expensive or because it is only a means to an end . . . the looting of the treasury?

Does it cost N1bn to move around the country on a campaign trail? Where is all the money the PDP spends going? To build the party or to bribe local officials to rig the elections in their favour?
To buy votes from the uninformed populace?

It does cost a lot, Nigeria is a lot larger than togo or ghana, chartering aircraft, renting venues, placing ads in newspapers and so on cost money

but following your logic, if all the money PDP uses is for rigging, then Utomi should have enough funds to visit all states and let himself be seen! Has he done this? No, instead he is running an elite focused campaign, maybe the diaspora will come home to vote for him.

debosky:

It does cost a lot, Nigeria is a lot larger than togo or ghana, chartering aircraft, renting venues, placing ads in newspapers and so on cost money

but following your logic, if all the money PDP uses is for rigging, then Utomi should have enough funds to visit all states and let himself be seen! Has he done this? No, instead he is running an elite focused campaign, maybe the diaspora will come home to vote for him.

I see your point. It is sad however that our (s)elections has become a race for he who has the most funds. I dont blame Yar Adua for going to sleep during the debates, at least he has the financial clout that his state monthly revenue provides.

that is an unfair and inaccurate claim, the man has left surpluses in Katsina, adjudged as being clean with no hand dipping in the treasury.

if these so called ideas men who want to change things around in the country cannot find ways to garner support. then they aren't as good as they say, or they have not quite gotten ready to lay a realistic challenge to the status quo.

TELL M E U are joking o! oil flows from the north to where? south? lol , oil no be water na! that na kolomentalist personm

Like you, I was more than disappointed with the caliber of people who want to rule our Nigeria.

It was something I looked forward to and honestly, I was disappointed that Okotie did not show up giving Yar'dua an excuse also.( , or am I wrong?)

you could see 'the general" nodding his agama-lizard-like head in agreement with our learned and distinguished Prof. Pat Utomi.

I had initially written a blog-post on the issue http://extreeminvestor..com/2007/04/guber-and-presidential-debates.html and done justice on what could be expected with a cue from another blog friend of mine.

Well, the days of hiding behind OBJ are over as those who were fortunate to have electricity or own gen-set ( with fuel) saw what the true Leader should be.

The election will hold and we must sacrifice that day for this Nigeria.If you are amongst those that did not register, you are part of those running this country down and its a shame, cos some how you are not positive in attitude.

If you registered and will sell your vote for a few pennies, may your days last like that of Esau's pot of porridge.

If you registered and will be "unavailablly absent" like some guber or presidential candidates, I leave you at the mercy of posterity.

Long live our nascent democracy!

long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria!!

The election will hold, with or with-out you!!!

A nation gets its kind, as leaders. I will vote Pat Utomi, please for those of you out there, I think Lagos deserves Ibukun Ohimai.

**** To the Admin, this is my personal opinion o! I am no campaign manager, thanks for the opportunity****

Pat Utomi is class in all areas and i know he will win.

God will help us. He always do

Yeah and i hope and believe Pat Utomi wins too.Pls Vote wisely

Building structures sometimes is not necessarily about having money. The problem in Nigeria is as soon as elections are over the opposition just disappear and then reconvene on the eve of another election. You simply cant unsit the ruling party like that, its not possible.

What the opposition should do after this election is to maintain the structures they have in place now, go to the grass roots connect to the people while preaching the message of hope, bringing to their awareness the smallness of our politics and why we need to turn the chapter, attack government draconian policies while lending themselves as a voice to the people. With that the people will have someone to trust and when its time for elections the masses can even contribute as little as N100 each to support a cause they believe in.

Not after election they will all go to sleep, in the hope to wake up one week to election to form rainbow alliance against PDP, it wont get them anywhere. As it is our election is simply a choice between a couple of evils and Nigerians simply dont know who to trust.
When the PDP wins again people will start wasting their time and resources in courts when they have not done their homework very well.

I no get light for house.

No thanks to our bastard and wicked president.



Thats all i can say.

lmao.Obj no try @ all.

yar adua 'll be brought alongside uzor kalu and 2 others tomorrow 4 NTA's.

I want him to be brought alongside Utomi. I want people to see Utomi as a potential candidate in 2011.

They wldnt do dt cos dey know Utomi will expose his weakness.