President Muhammadu Buhari, Election results, #IAmNorth and why the anger at the North is misplaced

What should have ordinarily been a chatter about the undue influence of political thuggery to force votes for a particular party became the subject of lazy commentary on tribalism and how it has divided us.

Nigerian millennials tag themselves liberals and progressives while claiming they are not as susceptible to tribalism like the previous generation. The general election has shown these not to be true.

As a generation, we are continuing the worrying divisive traits that divided the our parents’ generation. . Our history of division lends itself to the mercy of events like the amalgamation of 1914 by Frederick Lord Lugard. The height of the problems we find ourselves in became centerfold and blossomed during the first and second coups we experienced as a nation.

For this, Pulse Senior Editor, Ayomide Tayo wrote an explainer on the problem and puts the problem down to avoidable problems of age-old bitterness and irresponsibility, but we did not end there.

As a result of the same elections cast on February 23, 2019, results were collated and announced over the three days following that day and opinions have since been split. There have been allegations of rigging and more anger and frustration than before.

The worst part is that young people who didn’t even bother to vote have somehow grown a voice in the grand scheme, criticizing others for their choice. It seems they felt they could shelve their civic responsibility and live vicariously through others, so when things don’t go their way, they can complain and find vindication in the stars. Isn’t it just brilliant?

The North

President Buhari’s voter base is the North especially Katsina, Kano and Kaduna (weirdly dubbed the Kardashian sisters on Twitter). The staggering numbers Buhari got in those states, have led to anti-Northern sentiments on social media.

These anti-Northern sentiments include illiteracy, nepotism, being gullible, and tribalism. To the average Nigerian, the strong Buhari win in those states was simply a case of a Northerner supporting another Northerner.

These disgraceful accusations from would-be elitists who probably failed to vote or even register for a PVC make the matter even more hilarious. Instead of hating a people for expressing their democratic right , why not look inwards and evaluate how you have pulled your weight in the democratic process?

The anti-Northern sentiments led to the rise of the pro-Northern Nigerian movement on Twitter, #IAmNorth.

While we saw even greater bigotry on that thread, the purpose of it was clear, they had to speak up. The Southern elitist tendencies to oppress with supposed knowledge is enough and we have to stop. It is old and it is tacky.

In the movie, “The Hate U Give,” which chronicled the internalized socio-political issues a black man confronts in the very race-driven America, and the ideal black reaction, a protagonist, Maverick Carter always reminded his Children of the classic quote, “THUG LIFE” means. He says it means “the hate you give little infants f**ks everybody.”

If we continue to strengthen socio-political tensions and inter-tribal hate, we will only create a legacy of hate that flows from generation to generation; a legacy which will end up leading to death and blood.

If the Donald Trump 2016 victory in the American Presidential elections taught us anything, it is that Twitter is only an elitist albeit a fractional subculture of the real world.

If all the people on Twitter filed out, we would realize how minute we are in the discussion of deciding general issues. Instead of moaning in complaint, get knowledge of the power of the North and try to displace votes in that region during the next election.

It is not your place to hate people for expressing their prerogative, especially not in an electoral process like voting. While the truth is that, we need individual responsibility to root out a failed government, and in there lies no place for sentiment, we will achieve nothing if we only point fingers.

Instead, it should about making people understand why they need a change.

Sometimes, it’s hard to foil a person from rejecting where he benefits. Asides the arguable issue of nepotism, the North will forever vote someone with a history of favouring them and someone they know, unless they are presented with a better option.

What the PDP and the third force failed to do was convince anybody. That, my people, is not a Northern fault. It is just plain logic.