The "No Structure" Sensation and the Presidential Polls

By Seven the Scribbler

On February 25, 2023, Nigerians came out en masse to decide who would occupy the nation’s highest office. Nnamdi Azikiwe Hall residents- University of Ibadan campus – Zikites, were no exceptions. Zikites in their traditional fashion did not excercise their franchise without spicing it up with some drama.

If it is true that a message is just as important as the way it is passed across, then, what message were the Zikites trying to pass across? And how important is the way it is passed? There have been different perspectives to a video footage making the rounds where a comity of Zikites kept chanting, “no structure” during the voting process.

The first theory is that Zikites wanted to make it crystal clear that majority of them were disgruntled with the ruling All Progressive Congress, hence, they made  sure to send signals to that effect by chanting, “no structure” as each person voted, the interesting twist to the story was when they significantly started counting the number of each voter as a presumption that it was a vote against the government of the day with “no structure” chants, especially owing to the sudden change of the Naira note where a call for an actual structure for a smooth transition has been begging for answers. This, they purportedly did oblivious of who each voter thumb-printed for.

The second theory, is that it was Zik Hall’s way of taunting the Labour Party of not standing a good chance at winning the election because it lacks structure, hence, the “no structure” chant. The presumption in this theory is that by calling out the number of each voter in chronology, it would become further glaring after the aggregation of each vote cast that the Labour Party does not have a structure strong enough to withstand the ruling party.

The third theory is that, the chant was directed to those sympathetic to the All Progressive Congress who advanced the argument that Labour Party would not win because, well, they have no structure, they say. Therefore, Zikites began to taunt the APC supporters with every vote as it became clearer by the feelers that Labour Party was winning in the University community, hence the chant, “no structure”, which is to say, the supposedly “no structure” party is winning despite the claims of no structure.

 This view is confirmed by the Information and Propaganda Minister, Adeniji Uthman also known as “Yamburger”, in his words, “The ‘no structure’ chant was a banter against the APC people, because they believe Labour Party doesn’t have political structure and they cannot win the election.”

The General Secretary of the UI Students’ Union, who is also a  resident of the hall, also lent credence to the third theory, in his words, “The ‘no structure’ chant means the party they claim has no structure is winning here in the University of Ibadan.”

However, seeing how noteworthy the moment was, the video was posted on the Zik Hall Twitter handle. The video caught the attention of many Nigerians especially, similarly sympathetic “Obidients” who understood the move to be one in support of the Labour Party candidate, Peter Obi. The virility of the video was such that it was referenced by Professor Bola Akinterinwa, a renowned academic and columnist who was a guest commentator on the elections on Arise TV, a widely followed international TV station.  The video has continued to leave social media abuzz.

Meanwhile, Lagos is a place many have described as the commercial capital of Nigeria, hence, the keen interest in the outcome of its gubernatorial election, which is coming up next Saturday. The writer of this story is curious about what drama would unfold in Zik Hall during and after the election.

Whichever, “no structure”  perspective you may have pitched your tent with, as a Zikite  with a political stance, one message has not only been  further corroborated but also redefined that, when Zik Hall sneezes, not only UI catches cold, the entire country catches pneumonia.