Thursday, 28th March 2024
To guardian.ng
Search
Breaking News:

Buhari, the dogs don’t like it

By Editor
10 February 2017   |   3:07 am
Sir: Once upon a time, a pet food company created a new variety of dog food and rolled out a massive marketing campaign to introduce the product.

Market. PHOTO: channelstv.com

Sir: Once upon a time, a pet food company created a new variety of dog food and rolled out a massive marketing campaign to introduce the product. Despite hiring a first-rate advertising agency, initial sales were very disappointing. The agency was fired and a new agency and a new campaign were launched. Sales continued to disappoint. If anything, they fell even further.

In desperation, the chief executive officer called in all of the top executives for a brainstorming session to analyze what had gone wrong with the two campaigns and how a new campaign might revive sales.

The meeting went on for hours. Sophisticated statistical analysis was brought to bear on the problem. One VP argued that the mix of TV and print ads had been messed up. Another argued that the previous campaigns had been too subtle and had failed to feature the product with sufficient prominence. Another argued that the TV ad campaign had focused too much on spots during sporting events and not enough on regular programming with a broader demography. Another argued the opposite… not enough sports programming had been targeted.

After the debate had raged for hours, the CEO felt they had accomplished very little. He asked if anyone else had any theories that might explain the failure of the new product. Finally, one newly hired employee raised his hand and was recognised. Maybe the dogs don’t like it, maybe the dogs don’t like the food, she said. That was it. If the dogs didn’t like the food, it didn’t matter the quality of personnel involved in its production and sophistication of advertisement, the sales would still not amount to anything.

The only true gauge of leadership is the people’s welfare; their standard of living and quality of life. These two parameters have massively deteriorated under the Buhari administration. You don’t need a prophet or rocket scientist to know that whatever is being cooked up in Aso Rock in the last two years as “Change” has been a distasteful and unpalatable meal to Nigerians to say the least, Nigerians don’t like this kind of food.

Nigerians need food security and also security of lives and property; simply put, to be able to eat food in peace and whilst the continuing efforts of government against Boko Haram, albeit with the Fulani herdsmen issues are acknowledged, the economy has been in a shamble.

What has happened to Nigeria’s economy today is as grievous as deducting 50 per cent or more from everybody’s earnings, both in the public and private sectors. Prices of goods and services have doubled and some even tripled, which means one’s salary today cannot do half of what he/she could accomplish with it two years ago. This is unacceptable.

In saner societies, this will be the best time for our leaders to sit back and reevaluate the situation in the country vis-a-vis their capacity to deliver and decide whether they can handle the country or not; whether to continue or resign and save themselves the shame of being forced to resign by the ballot because we won’t tire to vote people out.

Usha Anenga is a medical doctor in Makurdi, Benue State.

0 Comments