Nsit Ubium Long Series (EPISODE 10): When scorecards speak

BY UBONG SAMPSON

Representation may be defined  most usefully as a relation be tween more than one person, the representative and the represented or constituent, with the representative holding the authority to perform various actions that incorporate the agreement of the represented. The relation is by no means simple, since practically every type of human communication and perception can be shown to be intrinsic to representation. The relation is socio-psychological. Essentially subjective, it may, however, be affected by numerous objective conditions and events.

The rationale of representative government came up with the reality that in modern countries with large population assembling all the people and giving everyone the chance to speak for themselves is never an idea to be considered. At this point, it became imperative to adopt the rule of statistics concerning the issue of dealing with large population (small and large sample sizes). This adoption then brought about the law that, if the people are to participate in government, they must select and elect a small number from amongst them to represent them by way of speaking and acting on their behalf. In modern polities where large population is a visibly basic feature, representation in some form is necessary if government is to be based on the consent of the governed. Elected representatives are also less likely to reflect the transitory political passions of the moment than the people are, and thus they provide greater stability and continuity of policies to a government.

Representation is a concept of social interest largely in the contexts of power relations among leaders (the representatives) and followers (the constituents), be it in government, school business, church, or the family. It may well be noted in terms of a scale ranging from non-relation (or “bad” relation) to perfect or full relation. Thus an accord of a certain degree has to be achieved before representation may be said to exist; below that point, no substantial representation can be ceded.

Despite the improvement in research, the connection of representative and constituent in any setting or in society as a whole must continue to be referred to imprecisely in absolute terms (“is”—or “is not”—”represented”), or in imprecise comparative terms (“more representative than”). What would be required to make the terminology more precise?

Ouch! I almost got carried away by my desire to display how much knowledge I have about representation but for this self appraisal instinct which did the magic. However, back to the topic of the day, and Hon (Barr) Onofiok Akpan Luke, that super lawmaker whose parliamentary exploits presents a practical representation of what any theoretical research on representation can offer, takes the lead yet again.

His feats, both in politics and the arm of government he chose to serve, remain an irresistible attraction to every sight and ear. His consistency in and insistence on nothing other than ‘perfect delivery’, among many other qualities, has been the most striking; and above all, his kind of representation has brought to the fore, the fact that the state of knowledge of representation would also be improved if translation of concepts and findings of other scientific fields were made. This, the lawmaker was able to achieve through meeting the psychological conditions of representation, as well as its relevant concepts, such as perception (awareness), cognition (information), communication, stereotypes, and authority (charisma) that are to be regularly taken into account while assessing the scorecard of every representative.

Eloquent and highly cerebral, Onofiok believes government is a public trust, with the officers of government only being the trustees of that trust. This belief, he has tenaciously held onto at all times, and reason behind his all-inclusive kind representation. To Hon Luke, everyone, provided such has full constitutional rights, deserves a fair share and access to governance, as well as how he is governed. Here, his transparency and accountability puts him on top of the game, as evident in his words during his second constituency briefing which quotes: “I come before you on this day to render proper account of my stewardship because I owe you, above all things, the duty of accounting for my years as your representative in the state legislature.

Before bringing you (Nsit Ubium-ites precisely) to the reality of yet another election season, let me be sure that the memories of a robust first term representation courtesy of Barr Luke is intact. I need to be sure that the small scale business seed funds, the numerous constituency projects, the many unmentioned and unpublicized empowerment grants to youths, women and elders (including leaders of his party) are yet not forgotten. Most importantly or supposedly, the joy and pride of having an efficient, best performing, vibrant, eloquent, and what have you, man as a representative in the state legislature for another four years should be paramount in the list of reasons to have Barr Luke return to the state assembly.

However, signals from that geopolitical area shows a tremendously wide acceptance for the lawmaker.

Just recently, Mum went for a burial in Nung Obong, one of the villages in Barr Luke’s Nsit Ubium area and saw his posters everywhere, even on the doors of the villagers and, knowing me to be a super fan of the lawmaker, decided to share her amazement with me. To cut the long gist short, she ended the gist with the words: “awongo eneke ema Onofiok ami ntom ooo”. Please consult your next door neighbor if you are alien to the language, especially in written form. Funny as it sounded, I really laughed at Mum for not realizing this truth long before now. But despite all these, the lawmaker has refused to succumb to the virus of complacency, as coverage light has always spotted him taking his campaigns to every fissure and alcove of his constituency, urging everyone to be part of leadership making and selection. Whenever on this journey, the lawmaker has always enjoyed very rowdy reception from his constituents some of which were opportuned to benefit from his large-hearted benevolence but perhaps, never had a second opportunity to say a word of thanks. The constituents most times abandon their daily engagement, upon sighting his presence, and will never return to it until the lawmaker takes his leave. All this, I tell you, can only be possible when the righteous is on the throne.

Now the 2015 general elections are here finally and after concluding that of the presidential/national assembly, it is just about a week to that the gubernatorial/state assembly. At times like these in every elections seasons, only scorecards and not well funded campaigns, speak for every contestant. Perhaps I ordinarily would have expressed worry over Barr Luke’s fate; but considering how far and how blissful the journey has been, as well as the head-nodding of his people concerning his reelection bid, I am, by way of concluding, getting up from my writing desk, while joining the chorus echoing from the Nsit axis. Can anyone guess the lyrics?

UBONG SAMPSON (08021419939) IS A PUBLIC/POLITICAL/SOCIAL/ACADEMIC AFFAIRS ANALYST.