ELECTIONS ARE WON ON FACEBOOK. 

  
“For those of our uninformed little friends who are in the habit of reminding others that Elections are not won on Facebook and castigating their fellow Facebook users.

Well, you guys are right. Elections may not be won on Facebook for the common sense knowledge that Facebook don’t hold real polling units. However, Online presence will continue to drive Offline activities.

Deny this at your peril; the joke will be on you. 18 million Nigerians of voting age are on Facebook alone. 

In the last presidential election, 28 million people voted; this is out of the nearly 69 million registered voters. Of that number, (28 million voters) nearly 12 million people have Some form of Social media presence (8 million of the 28 million voters don’t have internet access anyway). But of Buhari’s 15 million voters, 8- 10 million of them have a twitter account and a Facebook page. Wether you like it or not, and wether you believe it or not, these people gave Buhari the presidency. 
Now tell me, where do you think the opinions and views and ultimate choice of these 8-10 million voters was shaped? 

Gone are the days when politics and social issues were entertained and discussed within the confines of a beer parlour and peppersoup joints. Facebook is the New Joint. 

In future, electoral victories will more likely come from Social Media presence than from the hinterlands of political allegiances. 

And yes, Elections are shaped by the media and the social media can ensure your victory as well as your defeat. Ask PMB, ask GEJ; and if you don’t understand what they are saying, ask me”.
By Ifeanycy Njoku /Culled from Mike Ikem Umealo (MIU, Dec. 2015).