“The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is.”—Winston Churchill
When the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN), came to limelight early this year as one of pro-Jonathan groups, some die-hard critics of this administration wrote off TAN as one of those pressure groups that would soon wither away within a particular time frame, but to their utmost chagrin, TAN has not only emerged as number one frontline pro-Jonathan group via its well-funded; researched and mind-illuminating jingles and advertorials using numerous media platforms which included but not limited to: electronic and print media, billboards, flyers, well-printed brochures, etc, which has helped in elucidating the unprecedented transformational strides of President Jonathan-led administration, but has equally succeeded in renewing the minds of Nigerians through its nationwide mass conscientization rallies—which enabled the propellers of TAN to galvanize grass root support for President Jonathan second term bid through the collection of millions of verifiable signatures and phone numbers, demanding Mr. President to throw his hat into the ring come 2015.
On seeing the irrefutable successes recorded by TAN so far, in highlighting the landmark achievements of this present government; at the same time selling President Goodluck Jonathan candidature to the electorates, the APC through its controversial spokesman, Lai Mohammed started throwing tantrums at TAN by issuing a red herring statement which was targeted at tarnishing the hard-earned image of TAN, by conspicuously trying to ram well-fabricated falsehood down the throat of Nigerians. APC in its venom-filled statement insisted that the rallies held across the country by TAN represent an assault on the intelligence and sensibilities of Nigerians, at a time of insecurity and health challenges. Mohammed continuing in his propagation of falsehood and myths said, “if President Jonathan had not been running a government hallmarked by impunity, there was no way any party would have begun campaign under the guise of a non-governmental organization (NGO) coordinated by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, ministers, governors and other public officials. The PDP-led Federal Government and its ‘NGO’ called TAN are bare-faced liars and cheats.” Responding to the ranting credited to the National Publicity Secretary of APC, Lai Mohammed, the quintessential Director of Communications and Strategy of TAN, Dr. Udenta .O Udenta tongue-lashed the national leadership of APC, describing them as a product of political nincompoops and scallywags. He noted that castigation of TAN nationwide rallies by the APC were what he termed, “…a classic example of the Talibanization of Nigeria’s political discourse space.”
According to the erudite scholar, Dr. Udenta .O Udenta, not only were the information contained in Mohammed’s criticisms false, but would neither deter them nor succeed in criminalizing their nationwide mass conscientization rallies, adding, “Lai Mohammed’s primitive tantrums, schizophrenic political mindset; the type that produces a duality of irreconcilable visions, perverse sense of judgment and cess-pit narrative and discursive mode will not deter us from accomplishing our set objective. The rallies have come to stay and those who don’t like them just have to live with them for the sake of their sanity and move on to other, hopefully, noble political pursuits.” Dr. Udenta also noted that while they would not be discouraged by the criticisms, the APC was pushing more by “crippled intellectual sterility and strategic imbecility, which have made them incapable of constructing a platform that will give TAN a run for its money, energy and efforts.”
In the noble quest to substantiate the incontrovertibility of impregnable truth marshaled out by Dr. Udenta, to puncture the ill-conceived fallacies being dashed out by APC’s propagandist, Lai Mohammed, Nigerians would like APC’s hireling to provide well-thought-out answers to the following thought-provoking; burning questions raging on the minds of Nigerians: out of over eight thousand pro-Jonathan groups rooting for the re-election of President Jonathan, why has APC’s attack dog singled-out TAN to pour out its vituperations and frustration on? Is APC as a lily-livered party, being intimidated by TAN’s over 45 television jingles broadcast over 4,000 times by four of Nigerian’s leading stations, countless radio jingles and over 250,000 copies of its rally brochures containing pictures, facts and figures of President Jonathan’s National Transformation Agenda in living action? Is this not a pathetic sign of conceding defeat before 2015 elections?
APC’s media tomfoolery insinuated that the nationwide zonal rallies being organized by TAN would encourage the spread of Ebola Virus; can APC explain to Nigerians the difference between religious gatherings like crusades and the ones being coordinated by TAN? Has APC for once, called for the closure of churches and mosques because of Ebola Virus; why using the same illogical reason to call for the stoppage of rallies being held by TAN? This is to confirm that APC is not only a party of ragamuffins; mooncalves but disgruntled personalities; whose hallmark of hypocrisies mesmerizes human intelligence. On the issue of funding of TAN and its activities, which APC’s vuvuzela has been using to disturb Nigerian’s serenity, Dr. Udenta responded by saying, “Lai Mohammed and the APC have made so much noise about the sources of TAN’s financing without providing one shred of evidence to back up the torrents of abuses, insinuations, innuendoes, and outright accusation that flow steadily from their very voluble and fertile imagination. The fact remains that TAN has neither sought nor received a Kobo from the Federal Government, all its ministries, agencies or department in executing its programmes and projects.”
In the foregoing context, Transformation Ambassadors of Nigerian (TAN), has not only succeeded in sending jitters down the nervous spine of the APC, but has torpedoed APC’s imaginary plan to take over the seat of power come 2015. Dr. Udenta threw down the gauntlet when he said, “In spite of all the facts we reeled out, we are yet to see just one counter electronic media programming attacking our well-researched documentation of developments occurring in the different national sectors in the past three and half years, or just one OP-ED refuting the veracity of our presentations.”
• Chidiebere, a public affairs analyst wrote in from Abuja.
Story story…I will not sell my vote due to cheap publicity.