Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, has said that elections are not won on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.
He recently took what many observers have described as a subtle jab at the opposition in the state, and Nigerians have been reacting.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting of the All Progressives Congress in Kaduna, briefly after the party’s victory in Saturday’s tightly contested bye-election across some federal and state constituencies in the state, he revealed that the real strength of any political party lies in grassroots mobilisation and people-centred governance.
According to him, members of the ruling APC should guard against being carried away by social media propaganda because there is no ballot box on social media platforms to decide the result of elections.
He stated that propaganda and online noise will never guarantee electoral victory, no matter how loud they are.
“There is no ballot box on Twitter. There is no ballot box on Instagram or Facebook. Elections are won at the grassroots, not on social media,” he declared to thunderous applause from the crowd.
Sani further noted that proper governance and democratic leadership are the ingredients needed to sustain APC’s reign in Kaduna and beyond.
He concluded by saying that the opposition parties lost the bye-elections because they wasted too much time and energy on fighting Twitter battles and Facebook wars, while the APC focused on mobilising real voters across wards and polling units.
“Our opponents chose to fight the propaganda battle, but we chose to fight the political battle.
They lost because the people know who is working for them. We will not waste our time on social media noise-making. Instead, we will remain with the people, because they are the real power brokers.
Since 1999, some communities have never voted for our party. But today, they stood with us because they saw inclusivity in action.
We made a pledge to defend everyone, irrespective of religion, ethnicity, or party affiliation, and we kept it. That is why they voted massively for us.
Our agricultural policies have restored hope to rural dwellers. These are the real voters who matter.
They are the ones who came out in their numbers to ensure APC’s victory.
Let us not abandon our wards and local governments. If we remain with the people, no party can defeat us. Party first, politics second,” he added.
