Now that the Elections are over

By Elabor Awelu
The cognitive impact of democracy in every human society or association lies in the ability to legitimately elect good leaders into government through elections and to see to the affairs of members of the society by understanding their grievances and at the same time helping them find solutions to them.
It is no doubt that the University is just like a second home to many students and the need for unionism that seeks to protect and support the interest of every stake-holder in the administraton of the University affairs in a multi diverse ethnic groups in a country like Nigeria with different ideologies that requires everyone’s opinion through the elimination and selection of interested candidates.
The Association of Faculty of Art students have decided who they believe truly deserve the mandate to represent their best interests for the 2022/2023 Academic section by coming in great numbers to vote as well as ensuring that their votes were counted. Even though the process at first seemed unachieveable, but in the long run and with consistent strive of the electoral committee became free, fair, smooth and credible as hoped.
It’s a big win for the elected executive members, their persistent efforts, hard work and commitment towards winning the support of Afasites during their campaign later materialised inspite of the gallant opposition they had. Well, Afasites know what is best for themselves. This is also to point out to the fact that with the right people in government, everyone is a winner, so with this, the opposition should work with the elected executive to realise their plans for Afasites. Not winning the election is not an excuse to failure.
As we all know that education breaks the shackles of ignorance and liberates the mind. It gives understanding of socio-economic order and physical contexture of the world. It equally gives people platforms to triumph over walls and follow through with aspirations beneficial to them individually and the society at large. Politics and governance in public institution.
The “objective reality,” or the faculty itself, is composed of “lighthouse” principles that govern human growth and happiness — Art concepts that are woven into the fabric of every civilized society throughout history and comprise the roots of every family and institution that has endured and prospered. The degree to which our mental maps accurately describe the feasibility does not alter its existence. The reality of such principles or natural human concepts becomes obvious to anyone who thinks deeply and examines the cycles of social influence of art and it’s history. These concepts surface time and time again, and the degree to which students in the faculty recognize and live in harmony with these concepts moves them towards either survival and stability or disintegration and destruction. The principles I am referring to are not esoteric, mysterious, or “religious” ideas. They are simply the fundamental principles of governance in every human society that should be carefully considered by the elected executive members. In essence, the they should be considered as foundations on which the policies of the newly elected executive members.
As an elected executive of the of the Association of Faculty of Art Students, commitment to the purpose of the office which you are elected into and also considering the reason why the students of the great faculty voted you as the right person for the position should be the number one priority in office. The executive arm of any Association plays an important role in setting the vision, purpose and strategies of the Association, thus you are directly involved in the day-to-day activities of the Association and the activeness of the faculty in the University at large.
During the rigorous period of campaign which went beyond the faculty premises to the halls of residence in the University, promises were made and strategies through which they will be carefully administered were alongside considerably well articulated. To this, every member of the Association of Faculty Students is a watchdog that will see to the administraton. A government is termed a failed one if such government fails to realise its purpose
Another important leadership characteristic is the ability to promote the active participation of various members in a way that yields alternative perspectives, improves the distribution of workloads and encourages a positive, inclusive atmosphere. It is the case that creating a friendly environment is also a basic factor which should be encouraged in other to effectively and productively facilitate good governance which is inline with the fundamentals of democracy.
However, the Rights of every Afasites should be of a very keen interest and should be a part of the driving force of any administration. In recent time, the insecurity challenges faced by students living in Agbowo is part of the “student rights” being violated every day which caused a lot students pain and sorrow. This is to emphasis that the administration of the Association should not be limited to the faculty only but also to work alongside with the University’s student Union and the University management to protect the rights of the students in the University as a whole.
In conclusion, the process of governing an association like the Association of Faculty of Art Students is most legitimate when it incorporates democratic principles such as transparency, students involvement in decision-making, representation, accountability and the recognition of the Fourth Estate. These enhance confidence in governmence and boosts participation.