As Nigeria’s 2027 general election approaches, the country is once again entering a season when political campaigns dominate the media space. And, as Frank Ugwuanyi often puts it, “Everyone becomes a reporter when it is trending; the real reporters continue when it gets boring.”
This is also the period when political enthusiasm takes some curious forms. An unemployed young Nigerian may borrow data from a network provider to passionately defend and campaign for a politician whose policies have done little to improve their economic situation—or whose administration has failed to create opportunities for them.
The election season is when content creators abandon their usual content to become campaign promoters. Musicians release songs praising political candidates and parties, while some clergymen turn their pulpits into platforms for promoting politicians and preaching exaggerated or unrealistic expectations about what their preferred candidates can achieve.
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Social media, meanwhile, becomes a battlefield of propaganda, arguments, insults and personality cults. Political supporters spend countless hours defending their candidates, often based more on loyalty than facts, policies or performance.
There is nothing inherently wrong with citizens participating in politics or supporting candidates of their choice. Democracy depends on political engagement. The problem begins when political loyalty replaces critical thinking, when misinformation is presented as journalism, and when personal interests take precedence over the broader national interest.
A society cannot make meaningful progress when citizens are more interested in defending politicians than demanding accountability from them. Elections should be periods for serious conversations about leadership, economic development, education, employment, security and the future of the country—not merely seasons of online warfare and political entertainment.
Nigeria needs politically active citizens, but it needs them to be informed, critical and objective. The media also has a responsibility to distinguish journalism from propaganda, while citizens must learn to question the promises and records of those seeking their votes.
The 2027 elections should therefore be more than a contest of personalities, slogans and social-media influence. They should be an opportunity to demand better leadership and hold political actors accountable.
If we continue to turn every election into a season of blind loyalty and media noise, we may keep changing politicians without changing the conditions that hold the country back.
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