19/08/2026
WHY BAD LEADERS KEEP WINNING ELECTIONS IN AFRICA
One question many of us keep asking is:
If almost everyone online is against bad governance, why do the same politicians keep winning elections?
After every election, social media is filled with anger.
"People didn't vote for them."
"The election was rigged."
"The country deserves better."
While electoral malpractice can occur and should never be ignored where there is credible evidence, that alone does not explain every election result.
There's another reality many people overlook.
Elections in Africa are won at the grassroots, not on social media.
That is a lesson many politicians understand far better than the average internet user.
Take Nigeria as an example.
Recently, the Kano State Government organized a mass wedding for about 1,500 people who could not afford to get married.
Many educated people online immediately criticized the initiative.
They asked:
"If they can't afford a wedding, how will they feed a family?"
"Shouldn't government focus on creating jobs instead?"
Those are reasonable questions.
From a long-term development perspective, employment, education, healthcare, and economic opportunity are far more sustainable than one-off interventions.
But here's the political reality.
For many of the beneficiaries, the government solved an immediate problem.
They feel seen.
They feel remembered.
And when election season comes, that experience may influence how they vote.
This is one reason poverty remains such a powerful political tool.
When people are struggling to survive, immediate relief often carries more weight than promises of long-term reform.
A bag of rice.
Cash support.
A free medical outreach.
School materials.
These things may seem insignificant to someone looking at national policy, but to someone who doesn't know where the next meal will come from, they matter.
Politicians understand this.
Many educated citizens, however, spend election season arguing online.
They write long Facebook posts.
Record videos.
Complain on X.
Debate in WhatsApp groups.
But on election day...
Some don't even have a voter's card.
Others stay at home because they believe their vote won't count.
The irony is this:
The people complaining the loudest are sometimes absent from the polling units.
Meanwhile, those with fewer resources often turn out in large numbers because politicians have engaged them directly throughout the campaign.
Democracy rewards participation, not hashtags.
If educated citizens want better leadership, complaining online is not enough.
Register to vote.
Collect your PVC.
Show up on election day.
Volunteer.
Educate others.
Engage your community beyond social media.
Real political change doesn't begin with trending topics.
It begins when citizens participate consistently in the democratic process.
If those who are informed refuse to vote, they leave the future in the hands of those who will.
The ballot, not the comment section, is where governments are chosen.
(c) Karngong Lovett Tangwa
Founder - Sparker Africa
