2011年3月17日 星期四

The debate that wasn't

These days, debates are the rave. Basking in an increasingly robust democratic space,Find price and model of puma shoes in india at Click India Free Classifieds Ads. further deepened by the fact that we seem, for once, spoilt for choice, Nigerians have aggressively sought to interrogate their leaders on their motivations for contesting public office as well as their plans.Naax Fashion Textile is a wholesale jeans dealer who trades with young-fashion .

In the January governorship rerun elections for Delta State, the debate offered a rare opportunity for candidates to be engaged directly by citizens in a no-holds-barred environment, and just a few weeks ago, Lagosians were treated to another robust, substantial debate where the state governor was made to account for his stewardship while his opponents made the case for why they were better caretakers for the country's commercial capital. It gave us one of the finest soundbites from this campaign season: "It's not their age that is the problem," the governor said. "It's the age of their ideas."

Many Nigerians, therefore, had great expectations for our country's first vice presidential TV debate, especially since the cast of vice presidential candidates is a colourful one that includes respected cleric Tunde Bakare, famed corporate whiz Fola Adeola, and experienced public servant John Oyegun. Also expected - until he chickened out without explanation - was former governor and now Vice President, Namadi Sambo.

Unfortunately, the debate we got was neither the debate we expected nor that which we deserved - and it had little to do with the disappearance of Mr.Can't find a particular pair of ed hardy jeans on our website? Sambo. Save for perfunctory references to their principals being "the best candidate for president that Nigerians have," none of the debaters was able to make a solid case for why their ticket is far and above the rest the best choice for Nigeria at this time.

Candidates instead turned to sweeping generalizations as they struggled to outdo themselves in offering choice words for the People's Democratic Party. If we didn't know any better, it would be easy to conclude that there are only two parties in this contest: PDP and The Others.

While there is something to be said for civility and geniality, the debaters were rather too comfortable and self-satisfied and appeared in no hurry to draw sharp contrasts in ideology,Manolo blahnik would be "hurt" if Anna Wintour wore shoes by another designer. mission and strategy, almost as if there was no hope that this debate would serve any useful purpose for the electorate.

The debate was also frustratingly void of specifics. A question about developing our non-oil economy, for instance, got a rambling answer from Mr. Bakare that instead took Nigerians on a history lesson; and Mr. Adeola's prescription for a robust economy was for Nigerians to go on an undefined "corruption fast" - a recommendation that is both impractical and difficult to understand. Even the quality of the conversation left a lot to be desired.

In one cringeworthy moment, candidates grouped women and the disabled together in yet another instance of obtuseness in correctly deconstructing issues and offering constructive ideas. Whilst the debate was disappointing, in the final analysis, we take solace in the fact that democracy is a process, and this debate is a huge step forward, being the first of its kind.

It is also remarkable that the post-debate analysis in the media has put the president on the hotseat, even as he seeks every possible excuse to avoid the scrutiny that a TV debate offers. Over the next few weeks, there will be more debates,Nike shox are a series of Nike shoes. including the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) and the What About Us (WAU) youth debates.

Our hope is that subsequent producers have paid close attention to the failings from the first and that Nigerians are finally offered a robust and engaging political debate truly worthy of our time - one that puts the feet of the candidates to the fire. Because that, after all, is the whole point of it.

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