It’s another election year and while the wheels of politics are turning, the film 4th Republic, directed by award-winning director and writer, ‘Ishaya Bako’ uncannily mirrors Nigeria’s current political climate; from the campaign trail to the ballot boxes. Here are four (4) precise ways in which the highly anticipated film has predicted the 2019 elections.
- VIOLENCE
In the trailer, a reporter claims that 19 people lost their lives including Mabel King’s (Kate Henshaw) campaign manager Sikiru with lots of violence erupting the whole place in the movie ‘4th Republic.’
Since 1999, thousands of Nigerians have been reported to be victims of election violence. A lot of lives were lost before and even during the just concluded general elections. 66 persons were killed in a fight which broke out in Kaduna State a day before the Presidential elections were rescheduled for February 23.
Reports have it that 35 persons were killed on the day of the election. There was also heated violence in some parts of Lagos State like Okota where thugs burnt ballot boxes and papers, this eventually led to the burning to death of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) Leader in that area. In Aguda, a Lagos suburb, thugs also disrupted the election process by scaring people off with dangerous weapons. In addition, a 19-year old undergraduate of Kogi State University, Daniel Usman was killed by a stray bullet from political thugs at his polling unit while attempting to exercise his civic duty. 16 people were killed in election violence as fights also erupted in some states across the nation.
- RIGGING
A regular feature in Nigeria’s elections, a lot of election malpractices were recorded in the film ‘4th Republic’. In a scene, corpers are found stuffing ballot boxes in a bus.
Shortly after the general elections were concluded, a viral video got circulated showing some youth corp members thumb printing ballot papers in the north.
In September 2018, former Governor of Edo State and National Chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC) Adams Oshiomole stated in a press conference that “only people who can accept the pain of rigging should participate in elections”. This inadvertently indicates what contesting an election in Nigeria looks like. In some parts of Kano during the election, underaged voters were queuing to vote!
- FIRE
In the line up to the elections in the ‘4th Republic’, this was also the case where buildings and cars were set on fire during the elections.
There were several fire incidents and attacks during the just concluded elections in Nigeria. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office in Osun state was burnt alongside ballot papers which got destroyed by hoodlums who tried invading the collation centre around 3 a.m after the election. There were also 11 blasts in the early hours of Saturday, 23rd of February before the Presidential elections commenced in Maiduguri, Borno State.
- TRIBUNAL
That was the statement made by Mabel King (Kate Henshaw) as she resorts to the tribunal after expressing her dissatisfaction with the election results that proclaimed the incumbent Governor Idris Sani (Sani Mu’azu) winner of the election.
In the same vein, former Vice President and Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar rejected the results declared by the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) and insisted on taking legal action. He declared in a statement; “I hereby reject the result of the February 23, 2019 sham election and will be challenging it in court”.
4th Republic also features Bimbo Manuel, Enyinna Nwigwe, Sani Mu’azu, Linda Ejiofor, Yakubu Mohammed and many more. It was produced by Bem Pever and co-produced by Kemi Lala Akindoju. It hits the cinemas on the 12th of April 2019.
Watch the trailer below: