By Charles Adeyemi
It is not that I really believe in this thing they call luck because like George S. Clason, author of ‘The Richest Man in Babylon’, I already know that lady luck is a product of opportunity and preparation.
Opportunity abounds for everyone everyday but how about the right kind of preparation that will decide which opportunity you will be able to take advantage of?
When I say, the right kind of preparation, a whole lot goes into the mix, including exposure, education, knowledge, attitude, connections, environment, optimism, mental attitude, faith, interests, disposition or taste and character, all of which collectively form a destiny that can hardly be changed.
Such are the factors that seem to have been working for Dr. Jonathan and perhaps more obviously for President Obama. But these two share yet another major factor, similarly working in their respective favours and contributing to their “mysterious luck”. This new factor is a social networking platform.
Dr. Jonathan Ebele Goodluck, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’s march into power and especially his current efforts at securing his place in office beyond 2011 is a story that many Nigerians home and abroad are already familiar with. However there`s another side to the story which many, especially the Internet illiterate or Facebook non-compliant mass of Nigerian older elites are not yet aware of: It is the way his “luck” has won him the hearts of the more than one million Nigerian youths who are hooked to the social networking platform, an addiction which in itself speaks volumes about the direction towards which the youth are already tilting the country; but that is a topic for another day.
Would you really call it luck, or preparation meeting opportunity, which latter is subsequently harnessed, managed, and explored by one who is really ready to do so and well too?
Any one who reads Mr. Presidents Facebook posts frequently must have noticed that Dr. Jonathan does not just put up posts on a daily basis, they are really insightful and inspiring, firing a host of young volunteers who are willing to go door to door for him the Obama way. What’s more, he creates the impression that he is reading the comments he receives every day by occasionally replying some of the respondents, even claiming on some occasions to have sent some of his aides to meet with those who have suggested novel ideas on solving some of our problems such as power.
What this simply means to a Facebook trained eye is that Mr. President has got very good managers to supervise his account. That again means having direct connections with youths who are up to date, who are aware of current trends in international affairs, as everything is now done on-line. Thus, Mr. President is not very far from a group of great advisers with revolutionary ideas that can take this country forward in leaps and bounds.
The Build Up Nigeria project on Facebook is already giving an indication of what could soon become a massive national youth re-orientation movement in addition to Jonathan’s latest publication “My friends and I”, a compilation of Facebook conversations with Nigerians, of course, mainly youths.
This is not to say that Goodluck Jonathan is the only presidential aspirant who is making use of this interactive social network. Nuhu Ribadu and Dele Momodu among others are also making efforts in the same direction no though their presence pales in comparison with Jonathan’s.
He started much earlier than the others and seems to also have better hands on his team. Moreover, he is a sitting president and can be much more easily publicised. Now all this you may call luck but is it really?
If the upcoming elections are to be won on Facebook, then there surely is no need for contests. Dr Jonathan has it all already. But there are so many intrigues in the Nigerian polity that our elections often defy opinion polls. Therefore, we will all have to keep our fingers crossed as we watch the unfolding scenario. We shall soon find out if Jonathans “good luck and Facebook” will translate to a four year slot in Aso Villa.