Nigerian Politics Is Financially Draining – Dayo Amusa

Dayo Amusa

Nollywood actress Dayo Amusa has expressed frustration over the realities of Nigerian politics. She recently had her say via her social media page, and fans have been reacting.

Describing the struggle for party tickets as uncertain and financially draining, Amusa noted that there is a clear disconnect between political assurances and outcomes during primaries.

Stressing that several aspirants are often misled despite heavy financial commitments, the moviestar added that political leaders will never stop offering assurances that do not translate into support during critical moments.

Her words, “That is why I prefer to use my money and eat… Some of us will have this online popularity, we will spend money at different places to several ‘leaders’ of the party… During primaries, you will struggle to get 10 votes.

Where are the leaders and their assurances? You’ll be lucky if they pick your calls after the primaries.

Why are you calling me honourable when you know you won’t give me ticket? Why come to my house for meeting when you know you’re going to my opponent’s house to give them reassurance? You politicians are dangerous.

Politics is a crazy game… This minute you’re so sure of ticket, the next minute it’s looking like you’re not even in the conversation. It’s not for the faint hearted.

When you’re denied ticket, you’ll start calculating maybe to wait for the next four years or join an unpopular party to contest.

The fact that they will be calling you ‘incoming’ when they know you won’t get ticket is killing me.”

WOW.

Nollywood is a sobriquet that originally referred to the Nigerian film industry. The origin of the term dates back to the early 2000s, traced to an article in The New York Times. Due to the history of evolving meanings and contexts, there is no clear or agreed-upon definition for the term, which has made it a subject to several controversies.

The origin of the term “Nollywood” remains unclear; Jonathan Haynes traced the earliest usage of the word to a 2002 article by Matt Steinglass in the New York Times, where it was used to describe Nigerian cinema.

Charles Igwe noted that Norimitsu Onishi also used the name in a September 2002 article he wrote for the New York Times. The term continues to be used in the media to refer to the Nigerian film industry, with its definition later assumed to be a portmanteau of the words “Nigeria” and “Hollywood”, the American major film hub.

Film-making in Nigeria is divided largely along regional, and marginally ethnic and religious lines. Thus, there are distinct film industries – each seeking to portray the concern of the particular section and ethnicity it represents. However, there is the English-language film industry which is a melting pot for filmmaking and filmmakers from most of the regional industries.