By: Akinjide Adebowale
The night Yamburger was cheered after he went head-to-head with his opponent during the last manifesto night, the deafening chants of "Yamburger" to unspeakable decibels already gave it away that Adeniji Uthman was going to lead the most vibrant hall in the University of Ibadan for the next academic session.
The next day, Uthman's numbers at the polls proved he would still have won the elections even if he had raked half the numbers he did. He was the people's man. But for the past nine months, the leadership of the hall have left far too many, if not all, disappointed, mired in discomfort and unimaginable hardship.
Poor Manifesto That Got Away With
In the frenzy of the moment and with bustling rush of emotions, it is almost scarcer than a unicorn's horns for anybody to introspect on campaign plans and promises of their preferred candidate, especially in the University of Ibadan where, time and time again, elections have been won on popularity. And this was what had it going for Mr. Hall Chairman during the elections.
Yamburger's manifesto lacked any signification to the pressing issues of the hall, for starters. For instance, in his manifesto, neither did Yamburger mention anything that concerns the poor supply of water in the hall nor did he pay attention to the deteriorating state of facilities in the hall that cried for help. His manifesto was more about reviving the tradition.
For a hall that fielded three executive candidates at the SU level and won by Zikite's massive support. A hall that produced numerous faculties and departmental presidents, it was rather a shocker that all the hall chairman could give importance to conjure up in his manifesto was that Zikites still needed extra lessons on the traditions of Zikism.
Zikites barely want too much: proper water supply, equal supply of power with other halls, to be able to see football matches in their own hall and other related issues that surround welfare.
Inexistent Zikism Orientation Committee
To embattle the problem of "declining" tradition, Yamburger promised two things:
1. To set up a Zikism orientation committee that would publish articles once a month and would also conduct a regular checks on Zikites; and
2. In conjunction with the Hall management, 'return', the hall back to a room allocation that mixes staylites, finalist and freshers in the same room. Emphasis on 'return' rather than 'change,' as promised by the hall chairman. This is because the system that Yamburger planned to utilize in fostering Zikism was not novel, neither was it the first time that it was adopted in the hall. The system was used as recent as the 2018/2019 academic session.
Of these promises, Yamburger was only able to fulfil the former which does not solely depend on him but on the discretion of the Hall management. The latter, which was mainly his own to execute, till today, only remains what it has always been- a manifesto in a word document.
Soft Skills Mentorship Program / Ingressive for Good (14G) That Never Came for Good
Yamburger also promised to organize a mentorship program that would train Zikites in other aspects of life beyond academics. He promised to use a direct mentorship system to drive the implementation of these soft and life skills program, where alumni and skilled individuals would aid Zikites in the skills of their choice. According to him, these skilled mentors would provide guidance and support for their mentees.
In tandem to the above is that he will also, together with a non-governmental organization, 'Ingressive for Good', whom he vouched to have benefited from, organize soft skill training for interested Zikites. But what is the rationale behind this particular promise?
The promise of mentorship on life skills is drabby to start with, as there are numerous organizations both in the hall and in UI generally, willing to help Zikites on various life skills. There is the Zik LnD where public speaking is both being practiced and taught, JCI for leadership, UCJ/ Zik Press for writing and journalism, and lots more.
Apart from that, there has been no noticeable presence of 14G in Zik Hall. However, while a soft skill empowerment program was organized in first semester, it is not the program the hall chairman promised, being that the attendees of that particular program were charged monetarily. What then is the difference of such from buying a professional course on Coursera or Udemy (where you could even apply for financial aid to offer those courses for free). Therefore, the promise of soft skills in the hall is either a waste of space in Yamburger's manifesto or just another addition to make the content of the manifesto more bulky
Inability To Build An Alumni Network Similar To Indy's
Yamburger further conveyed in his manifesto that the hall does not have a proper alumni network that incorporates fresh Zik Hall graduates, and he promised to create a platform to have a proper alumni body. A plan which he deems will foster a better funding for developmental projects in the hall. However, the only pointer to whether this has been implemented or not is to check whether there are developmental projects in the hall or otherwise. Therefore, deducing from the absence of any projects in the hall, it would make it correct if it is deemed that this particular plan only still remains mere black inks on a white A4.
Besides, the need to create a better alumni network is a means to an end, not an end in itself. A cohesive alumni body is only useful in the hall if it serves the purpose of the hall. Therefore, that does not belong in the body of a manifesto. Once again, the hall chairman did not (we take it for granted that he now does) know fully what a manifesto is, showing again that his manifesto was poorly written.
A Failed Fundraising Committee
To help Zikites in need, the hall chairman promised to create a fundraising committee. He rationalized the intentionality and feasibility of that promise by acclaiming that he was able to raise funds for two Zikites while he was IPM. However, the ability to raise funds for few persons spontaneously does not denote the feasibility and the executional power of a fundraising committee. While the former can be relatively easy, the former requires a better structure and work rate. It is, however, important to recognize that few Zikites were able to enjoy the bursary program spearheaded by Uthman. But the committee, the according to Yamburger would also be aimed to help Zikites in need of help in terms of health or other challenges. And in this, the committee, if it exists at all, has not been up to task.
Non-Existent Skill-Based Networking System
Uthman also promised to build a networking community where people with various skills would be open to networking. This collaboration, he says, will be in the form of seminars, workshops and panel discussions. This particular plan, if implemented would facilitate collaborative growth, and also create an enabling space for those who are newbies in numerous soft skills. However, as simple as this plan is, there is no such in Zik, at the moment.
Other Leadership Failures Under Yamburger
Upon all the "failures" and the "non-existents," Yamburger has proven time and time again to be a shadow of everything Zikites who chose him at the polls knew him for.
Before elections, while still being the IPM of the hall, Uthman was always in the faces of Zikites, showing himself as an approachable person and someone who will always provide solutions to issues Zikites bring to him. But since the beginning of his tenure till this present moment, Uthman has always blamed the "unresponsive" school management for his numerous administrative failures.
The 'unresponsiveness' of the management became so pronounced that it became the topic of the one and only congress that has held in his tenure. While Zikites agreed that a subtle protest would be a viable method to tackle this problem, Uthman promised Zikites that night that pamphlets would be sent to rooms for Zikites to append their signatures to the protest, as a sign of an all-inclusive consent. For a congress held in first semester, no pamphlet was distributed, neither did Zikites get feedbacks from their hall chairman. And the resolutions of the most powerful decision making body in the hall died a natural death.
Apart from the blame game that has been pointed to be a cankerworm in Yamburger's tenure, he has also mastered the art of 'ad hominem' anytime Zikites demand accountability from him. While recently responding on the hall's WhatsApp group, to a Zikite asking why the executives have failed on many fronts, Uthman, rather than owning up to responsibility, embarrassingly advised the man to pick up the form of the hall chairman if he think it's easy. This was a man who many had deemed to be responsive before elections. Ours have mastered Nigerian politics to a fault- beg for votes, but become blind when accountability is demanded.
Recently, Yamburger has gone on a donation campaign to renovate the hall's reading rooms. This move, as smart as it may look, is deceptive. It is just to mask up the numerous failures during this tenure. And that is the case for some reasons. Apart from the fact that it is untimely, in that Yamburger's tenure is almost over, the fact that the poor state of reading rooms did not just appear today makes its timeliness even outrightly poor, and there is no amount of "delay is not denial" that can rescue that. If it is not just to score a cheap political point, then what is? If the reading room is finally renovated through Zikites' donation, it will not be deemed Uthman's project, rather a collective efforts of Zikites, and it does not take a hall chairman to do that.
