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A mission school teacher.

On the day of the election, we see Roof in a moral dilemma. For the first time, his moral conscience pricks him not to betray Marcus. But it is only a momentary impulse and vanishes almost immediately when Roof recalls the picture of iyi and the cocoa farmer harvesting his crop. Then he hits on an idea of deceiving both Marcus and Maduka. He folds the ballot paper, tears it in two at the crease and drops the first half into the box meant for Maduka and the other half into the box meant for Marcus. Thus, the writer successfully delineates how ‘money politics’ can corrupt people at all levels. It also reveals the contagious nature of an immoral attitude as the villagers who feel they “have climbed the iroko tree today and would be foolish not to take down all the firewood needed” blatantly ask for bribes.

It is Roof who is responsible for this moral degradation. The fall of Roof demonstrates the deepening level of corruption and the dimming of moral principles. Although Roof overcomes his personal dilemma on election day by tearing his ballot paper in two – one-piece for Maduka, the opponent, and one for Chief Marcus Ibe, his own employer his act illustrates the basic unreliability and political dishonesty of people working for elections. The plot of the story hinging on this man who bribes the electorate and who is bribed in turn drives home the deviant tendency of the political scene.

Rufus Okeke, called Roof for short, was a very popular man in his village. His popularity was due to the fact that even after spending two years as a bicycle apprentice in Port Harcourt, Roof had come back to Umuofia of his own free will with the intention of guiding his people in difficult times. If he had stayed on in his job he would have enjoyed a rich life. By this gesture, he wins the gratitude and admiration of his people.

Marcus Ibe was a not-too-successful mission school teacher. When he was almost on the verge of dismissal on the basis of a female teacher’s complaint, he joined politics, got elected as a representative of Umuofia and was made Minister of Culture. People referred to him as Chief the Honourable Minister of Culture. In a period of five years Marcus became very wealthy,was given many chieftaincy titles and doctorate degrees and several other honours. He got a huge mansion built in Umuofia and named it ‘Umuofia Mansions’ and got it opened by the Archbishop. On the day of the opening, he hosted a grand lunch to the people of his village slaughtering five bulls and countless goats. After feasting in his house, people were full of praise for him. They opined that he was a great man and does his things like a great man. He also owned two big cars.

Marcus had wisely joined politics just in time to avoid imminent dismissal arising from a female teacher’s complaint.

Some of the honours/benefits politics had brought to Marcus Ibe were wealth, chieftaincy titles, and doctorate degrees.

Marcus Ibe’s stalwarts conducted the whispering campaign in ‘The Voter’.

(a) a fly trying to move a dunghill.

‘Umuofia Mansions’.

Five months’ salary.

Four shillings.

Two shillings to each voter.

In ‘The Voter’, Achebe tries to present a true picture of the drama that is witnessed during an election held in a small town in Nigeria. There are two main characters and two political parties in the story and the voters are the villagers of Umuofia. The roof is an energetic young man, who is now working as the election campaign manager for Marcus Ibe, who was once a local mission school teacher and was on the verge of dismissal from service on the basis of a female teacher’s complaint.

Marcus Ibe joins the People’s Alliance Party, contests the election and gets elected. He becomes a minister and his government completes a five-year term and he is now seeking re-election. During his term as a minister, he amasses a lot of wealth, comes to own two big cars, builds a huge mansion in his native village and wins several chieftaincy titles and doctorate degrees. But his people remain the same – poor, illiterate, ignorant, and naive. The situation in his village also does not show any improvement. The same old problems of lack of running water and electricity continue to plague the people and prevents them from improving economically and politically. When the story opens, we learn that Marcus Ibe is seeking a second term and everyone is sure that he is going to get a landslide victory because there is no opposition party worth taking into consideration.

But there is a change in the perception of the people. After feasting in Marcus’ new house and noticing his wealth and power, the poor people of Umuofia realize that ‘elections’ do have a meaning and their votes which they had underrated before, are of high value. Therefore, they demand some value for their votes and Roof manages to convince them that they should vote for Marcus again by giving four shillings each. Some tribes down the coast had set up a new political party called POP with the objective of saving the people from ‘totally political, cultural, social and religious annihilation’. Their campaign leader comes to Roof’s house and offers to buy his vote for five pounds. Roof initially is enamoured of the five-pound notes and agrees to vote.

But the POP leader cleverly gets him to swear on the ‘iyi’ that he will vote for Maduka. Finally, on the election day, his conscience pricks him to a little extent and Roof feels like voting loyally for Marcus and returning the money to the POP election manager. But the oath he has taken before ‘iyi’ does not allow him to do so and there is a moral dilemma. However, Roof cuts his ballot paper in two, drops one half into the box meant for Maduka and drops the other half into the box meant for Marcus and saves his conscience and his life too. This is the story in a nutshell.

There are lessons to learn from this story. We must note that merely naming our government as ‘democracy’ and setting up all the things needed for holding elections do not guarantee that people will be able to exercise their true mandate and will elect competent members to the government which will strive for the upliftment of the people socially, educationally, economically and culturally. We cannot guarantee democratic governance by merely holding elections regularly. First, we must educate the people about their rights, duties and responsibilities in any election.

Secondly, we must ensure that people have the right to recall their representatives if they do not strive to improve a lot of people. Thirdly, elected representatives must be forced to account for their earnings after joining the government. Finally, there should be an authority which should oversee that sanctity of election procedures is not tampered with.

Also, those who get elected are self-centred and exploit the people and the situation to their benefit. On the whole, one can argue that by merely holding elections regularly we cannot ensure that a democratic government will come into place. Secondly, the electoral system that is now in place in the story is not foolproof. As regards the relevance of the story to our own situation, one can argue that it is highly relevant even today. Even after nearly seven decades of independence, we have not been able to ensure free and fair elections, the main reason being the lack of education and moral values. We are witness to every type of corrupt practice in elections.

Maduka, the leader of the POP, competed against Marcus in the elections.

In ‘The Voter’, Achebe tries to present a true picture of the drama that is witnessed during an election held in a small town in Nigeria. There are two main characters and two political parties in the story and the voters are the villagers of Umuofia. The roof is an energetic young man, who is now working as the election campaign manager for Marcus Ibe, who was once a local mission school teacher and was on the verge of dismissal from service on the basis of a female teacher’s complaint.

Marcus Ibe joins the People’s Alliance Party, contests the election and gets elected. He becomes a minister and his government completes a five-year term and he is now seeking re-election. During his term as a minister, he amasses a lot of wealth, comes to own two big cars, builds a huge mansion in his native village and wins several chieftaincy titles and doctorate degrees. But his people remain the same – poor, illiterate, ignorant, and naive. The situation in his village also does not show any improvement. The same old problems of lack of running water and electricity continue t<3. plague the people and prevents them from improving economically and politically. When the story opens, we learn that Marcus Ibe is seeking a second term and everyone is sure that he is going to get a landslide victory because there is no opposition party worth taking into consideration.

But there is a change in the perception of the people. After feasting in Marcus’ new house and noticing his wealth and power, the poor people of Umuofia realize that ‘elections’ do have a meaning and their votes which they had underrated before, are of high value. Therefore, they demand some value for their votes and Roof manages to convince them that they should vote for Marcus again by giving four shillings each. Some tribes down the coast had set up a new political party called POP with the objective of saving the people from ‘totally political, cultural, social and religious annihilation’. Their campaign leader comes to Roof’s house and offers to buy his vote for five pounds. Roof initially is enamoured of the five-pound notes and agrees to vote.

But the POP leader cleverly gets him to swear on the ‘iyi’ that he will vote for Maduka. Finally, on the election day, his conscience pricks him to a little extent and Roof feels like voting loyally for Marcus and returning the money to the POP election manager. But the oath he has taken before ‘iyi’ does not allow him to do so and there is a moral dilemma. However, Roof cuts his ballot paper in two, drops one half into the box meant for Maduka and drops the other half into the box meant for Marcus and saves his conscience and his life too. This is the story in a nutshell.

There are lessons to learn from this story. We must note that merely naming our government as ‘democracy’ and setting up all the things needed for holding elections do not guarantee that people will be able to exercise their true mandate and will elect competent members to the government which will strive for the upliftment of the people socially, educationally, economically and culturally. We cannot guarantee democratic governance by merely holding elections regularly. First, we must educate the people about their rights, duties and responsibilities in any election.

Secondly, we must ensure that people have the right to recall their representatives if they do not strive to improve a lot of people. Thirdly, elected representatives must be forced to account for their earnings after joining the government. Finally, there should be an authority which should oversee that sanctity of election procedures is not tampered with.

Also, those who get elected are self-centred and exploit the people and the situation to their benefit. On the whole, one can argue that by merely holding elections regularly we cannot ensure that a democratic government will come into place. Secondly, the electoral system that is now in place in the story is not foolproof.

As regards the relevance of the story to our own situation, one can argue that it is highly relevant even today. Even after nearly seven decades of independence, we have not been able to ensure free and fair elections, the main reason being the lack of education and moral values. We are witness to every type of corrupt practice in elections.

The Progressive Organisation Party (POP) had been formed by the tribes down the coast.

Maduka is the leader of the Progressive Organisation Party.

(c) he wanted to confirm the amount paid to each.

(c) the benefits the elders received.

(a) the red notes on the floor.

(a, c) friends/acquaintances.

Roof Okeke is an energetic young man and has come back to his own village Umuofia, after working as a bicycle repairer’s apprentice for two years in Port Harcourt. It is true that he would have enjoyed a rich life if he had stayed on in his job. But he comes back to the village and tells the people that he wants to guide them in difficult times. Later he becomes ’election campaign manager’ for Marcus Ibe and over a period of five years becomes an expert in election campaigning at all levels.

In the story, we get to know more about Roof when he is on the job, engaged in one of his whispering campaigns. He tells the elders that Marcus Ibe, being a ‘son’ from their village, has been made a minister and it should be considered a great honour. Then he tries to use his rationalistic thinking with the people. He asks them, “Do you ever stop to ask yourselves why we should be singled out for this honour?” He himself answers his question. He tells them that they are favoured by the PAP leaders. Here we see Roof as a manipulator at work. He knows for sure that Marcus was perhaps the only man with some education.

Secondly, there was no opposition party. Basically, the village folk were innocent and naive and hardly realized the meaning of an election and the value of their mandate. Roof exploits this situation to his advantage.

Moreover, when he comes to learn that people had understood the benefits of entering politics and winning an election as seen in the case of Marcus Ibe and are now planning not to give their vote free of charge, he immediately informs Marcus and keeps him prepared to pay some money to the people in exchange for their votes.

Finally, we get a clear picture of Roof as a manipulator when he accepts five pounds from the election manager of POR He makes sure that they will not disclose the news of his accepting the money. He also tries to keep his conscience clear by telling them that he works for Marcus; while putting his ballot paper into the box, he cleverly manages to cast his vote for both Marcus and Maduka, without attracting the wrath of ‘iyi’.

In this story, Achebe satirises ‘politicians’ and makes an attempt to show how even in a democratic setup election can become farcical.

Unlike in dictatorship or monarchy, in a democratic setup, people have the freedom to elect a ‘person’ to work as their representative in the government and work for their upliftment. One of the hallmarks of democracy is its insistence on transparency. Every person is subject to scrutiny by the public in the election process. A person is free to vote for a person of his choice from among the contestants. ‘Transparency’ in this refers to Roof’s informing the POP campaign leader that he is working for Marcus. Secondly, whether Roof informs him or not, it is well known to everyone that Roof is Marcus’ election campaign manager. The candidates are permitted by law to make known to the people all such appointments and maintain transparency in their dealings.

However, no candidate can strike a deal with the people and buy their votes. But this is done clandestinely. The POP campaign leader knows that Roof is working for Marcus. Therefore, they want to buy Roof’s vote first so that they will let him know that the POP leaders will pay in pounds and not in shillings. This is the message they want to put across to the people through Roof. Probably, next time, Roof who has made a name as an efficient election campaign manager for Marcus, will be bold enough to demand ‘pounds’ instead of shillings from Marcus and if he refuses to pay in pounds, he might go and work for the POP leader. That way he will be able to motivate his people to vote for POP instead of lyiarcus. Thus, the POP campaign managers’ meeting with Roof is daring misuse of transparency in a democratic setup.

(c) realized Marcus’s wealth.

POP stands for Progressive Organisation Party.

(b) he enjoyed all the comforts of the city in his village.

Marcus had two long cars and had just built himself the biggest house anyone had seen in these parts. He had entertained his people slaughtering five bulls and countless goats to feed the people. Though the village had no electricity, he had installed a private plant to supply electricity to his new home. Secondly, his house was opened by the Archbishop. Thirdly, he had been made a minister after he won the election. That is why he was considered rich and powerful.

(b)  school teacher.

POP stands for Progressive Organisation Party. This party is formed by the tribes down the coast to save themselves from ‘totally political, cultural, social and religious annihilation’. The POP was a complete non-entity in the first election. Once the organizers come to know that there is no opposition party, some rich members of the tribes down the coast, form this party. They want the people to know that they will be paid pounds and not shillings if they listen to them and vote for them. In the story, we do not get any hint about the objectives of the PAP, but the organizers of the POP claim that they want to save the people from political, religious, cultural annihilation, though they appear to be no better.

From the situation described in the story, we can infer that the writer intends to tell the reader that no political party is seriously interested in improving the welfare of the people. They seem to know for sure that by winning an election, they can take the government in their hands and become rich. They seem to be unaware of their duties and responsibilities.

In this short story, Chinua Achebe makes an attempt to present before the reader how ‘elections’ lose their sanctity and are misused by greedy politicians for self-aggrandisement instead of bringing about improvement in the life of the people. 

The people of Umuofia vote en masse in favour of the People’s Alliance Party and elect Marcus Ibe, a local teacher, as their leader. Once getting elected, people see a great many changes in Marcus’ life. Their elected representative becomes wealthy, is awarded chieftaincy titles and doctorate degrees, besides many other honours. He also builds a huge mansion in his native village and names it ‘Umuofia Mansions’. He spends most of his time in the capital and comes back to stay in his village mansion sometimes.

The villagers do not have running water and electricity, but he gets a private plant installed in his village to supply electricity to his new house. To top it all, his new house is opened by the Archbishop. On the day the new house is opened, he hosts a grand dinner to all the people of his village, slaughtering five bulls and countless goats. The common people realize that winning an election can change an ordinary mission school teacher into a wealthy and powerful man. They also know that it is their ballot which has given him all those benefits. They recall that they had given their votes free of charge five years ago. They realize that they had underrated the power of the ballot paper and should not do so again. That is why, in the second election, they demand money for their votes.

The villagers believed that a strong desire to guide the people of Umuofia in difficult times was the motivation behind Roof’s leaving a promising career.

People’s Alliance Party.

To the People’s Alliance Party.

On the day of the election, Roof appears to be seriously interested in ensuring that the voters know who to vote for and how to exercise their choice. Along with others Roof prances up and down giving last-minute advice to the voters. As soon as the first rush of voters is over, Marcus promptly asks his campaign boys to go one at a time and put in their ballot papers. He asks Roof to go first. Roof’s spirits fall, but he lets no one see it. Roof dashes off in his springy fashion towards the booth.

When Roof goes into the booth, he faces a moral dilemma. But he overcomes his moral dilemma, cuts the vote into two, and drops the two halves in the boxes, one half for Marcus and the other half for Maduka. While coming out, he looks as happy as he was when he went in. Thus, by putting on a happy face and walking with a lot of energy in his gait while going into the booth as well as while coming out of the booth, Roof is able to conceal his betrayal of Marcus in the election.

Minister of Culture.

As soon as Roof went into the voting booth, he was confronted by the ‘car’ on one box and the ‘head’ on the other. He took out his ballot paper from his pocket and looked at it. For a moment he found himself caught in a moral dilemma. He could not decide whether he should vote for Marcus Ibe of the PAP or Maduka of POP.

As the election campaign manager for Marcus Ibe, he had worked enthusiastically urging the people to vote for PAP. He had also taken a lot of money and other gifts for his service. But, now he had put himself in a fix because he had accepted five pounds from the POP and had sworn before the ‘iyi’ that he would vote for Maduka. So he did not want to cheat, because his fear of ‘iyi’ from Mbanta troubled him seriously. On the other hand, he felt guilty for betraying Marcus Ibe. For a moment he felt like going back to the campaign manager and returning his five pounds.

Finally, the moment he thought of the red notes, he visualized the cocoa farmer busy at work and his swearing on that ‘iyi’. Therefore, he folded the ballot paper, tore it into two along the crease and put one half in each box. He put the first half into Maduka’s box confirming his action verbally, “1 vote for Maduka”.

Marcus Ibe was the Chief Honourable Minister of Culture in the outgoing government mentioned in the voter.

In ‘The Voter’, while inserting the ballot paper, Roof took the precaution of putting the first half into Maduka’s box.

Marcus Ibe was PAP’s most illustrious son referred to in ‘The Voter’.

In ‘The Voter’, ‘Man’s head’ was the election symbol of the Progressive Organisation Party (POP).

The roof was made to swear on the Iyi of Mbanta to ensure his vote for Maduka.

In the story ‘The Voter’, Roof is the election campaign manager for Marcus Ibe, a candidate of the People’s Alliance Party. On the night before the election, the leader of the POP campaign team visits Roof’s house. He places five pounds on the floor and tells Roof that he wanted his vote. Initially, Roof did not know what to say or do. But, when he gets up from his chair, closes the door and comes back, he gets enough time to weigh the proposition. He craves to make such a huge amount, his own.

However, his conscience pricks him and he tells in a feeble voice that the other person knows that he works for Marcus and it will be very bad on his part to accept a bribe, vote for Maduka and deceive his own master. But when the other person tells him that Marcus will not know who he has voted for, Roof throws away his moral scruples to the wind and asks him whether anyone will talk about him outside. When he assures him that they are only interested in votes and not gossip, Roof’s greed tempts him to accept the offer. But, he also gets trapped. The leader asks him to swear on the Tyi’, that he would vote for Maduka. Roof cannot go back on his promise. So he swears to vote for Maduka.

A motor car.

Five  pounds.

Roof worked as a bicycle repairer’s apprentice for two years.

Roof worked as a bicycle repairer’s apprentice in Port Harcourt.

‘Umuofia Mansions’ is the name of the biggest house in Umuofia, built by Marcus Ibe.

On the election morning, Marcus Ibe sat in the ‘owner’s corner’ of his enormous green car, shaking hands with the villagers.

The roof is an energetic young man of Umuofia, who has come back to his village giving up a bright future in the city. People believe that he has come back to guide them in difficult times and hence hold him in high esteem. When we read about the election, the writer tells us that the village of Umuofia already belonged en masse to the People’s Alliance Party and had elected Chief the Honourable Marcus Ibe as their representative in the previous election and nobody doubted his re-election this time also. The man behind Marcus’ success is Roof.

The roof was his election campaign manager and had become a real expert in election campaigning at all levels. Having already seen a change in Marcus’ status and wealth, Roof is able to gauge the people’s mood and the change in people’s perception of Marcus Ibe and had conveyed to his leader that a radical change had come in them. This way he prepares Marcus to plan his strategy to woo the voters in the coming elections.

After feasting in Marcus’ house on the day of the opening of his new house, people had realized what good things politics had showered on Marcus. They also regretted to a little extent that they had given their vote to Marcus free of charge in the previous election. Therefore, this time, they decided to demand a price for their vote. As expected, Roof, being an expert in election campaigning, comes armed with money to his whispering campaigns. During his whispering campaigns, Roof uses a lot of political rhetoric and tells the people convincingly that PAP favours the people of Umuofia. He says, “What greater honour can a village have? Do you ever stop to ask yourselves why we should be singled out for this honour? Think of the pipe-borne water they have promised us …” This way Roof manages to mesmerize the naive people into believing that Marcus is a great man and is going to do great things for their village.

Besides, Roof satisfies their desire for a share of Marcus’ earnings by giving them four shillings each. On the day of the election, Marcus entertains the people hiring a highlife band from Umuru. He sits in an enormous car and tries to impress the people with his wealth and eminence. He coins catchy slogans like ‘Vote for the car, and you will ride in it’. It is these strategies planned by Roof that ensures Marcus’ victory in the elections.

On the day of the election, Roof appears to be seriously interested in ensuring that the voters know who to vote for and how to exercise their choice. Along with others Roof prances up and down giving last-minute advice to the voters and pouring with sweat. As soon as the first rush of voters is over, Marcus promptly asks his campaign boys to go one at a time and put in their ballot papers. He asks Roof to go first. Roof’s spirits fall, but he lets no one see it. Roof dashes off in his springy fashion towards the booths. When Roof goes into the booth, he faces a moral dilemma.

But he overcomes his moral dilemma, cuts the vote into two, and drops the two halves in the boxes, one half for Marcus and the other half for Maduka. While coming out, he looks as happy as he was when he went in. Thus, by putting on a happy face and walking with a lot of energy in his gait while going into the booth as well as while coming out of the booth, Roof is able to conceal his betrayal of Marcus in the election.