Behind the candidates running for the presidential seat on February 22 were other men and women who either influenced the choice of candidate or their campaign. It is the right-hand men of the candidates who are ready to give their all for their election on the evening of February 22. Politicians or not who can be likened to kingmakers.
Emeritus Philippe Fanoko Kpodzro, a follower of a unique opposition candidacy in the 2020 presidential election, has been at the forefront of this initiative for several months. A party of the remnants of the coalition of the fourteen opposition political parties, it managed to unite a part of civil society around the idea of a single opposition candidacy. After many adventures and negotiations, it was on the person of Agbéyomé Messan Kodjo that the choice of the prelate was made; behind a wave of outrage and protest.
Nevertheless, the prelate assumes his choice, he certainly wanted to make Agbéyomé the future president of Togo. And he has hardly hidden it. For him, it is the president of the MPDD who is best placed to snatch the alternation so hoped for by the Majority of Togolese people. He is convinced that Kodjo Agbéyomé is the man for the job and spares no effort to push him away.
Monsignor Kpodzro has taken a multitude of steps towards other democratic forces to support this candidacy.
The results were mixed because he was able to convince some, but his idea was also rejected by others. It did not stop there. The prelate is resolutely committed to winning over the electorate alongside his candidate, whom some do not hesitate to call the candidate of the Holy Ghost.
Throughout the election campaign, the man of God was seen despite his very advanced age with Agbéyomé Kodjo, who was fighting campaigning until late at night. On campaign sites, he does not hesitate to speak to galvanize the crowd. Making two blows with one stone, he even tries in his campaign speeches to restore the image of Kodjo Agbéyomé with a dark political past.
Similarly spiritually, the prelate is always there for him. Organization of Mass, prayer session, the prelate tried everything spiritually for his candidate. The prelate is therefore willing to do anything to make Agbéyomé a King.
Alliance Togo Informatique
The political history of Togo, the West African sub-region and even the whole of Africa has never seen such a commitment by a prelate in the service of a presidential candidate. Monsignor Kpodzro will have been the first.
For us, the King’s Maker, this is the name that best suits Monsignor Kpodzro. But his candidate was unable to ascend to the throne. He bit the dust as they say. 18% against 72% for the ruling party candidate Faure Gnassingbé.
Other candidates are also not exempt from this reality. As for the candidate Jean Pierre Fabre of the National Alliance for Change, it is the national secretary of the party and special adviser Éric Dupuy who emerges. He’s on all fronts. Where we should normally see his president. He does not hesitate to go to the media to justify certain acts of Jean-Pierre Fabre. He responds when necessary to attacks by Togolese authorities and even some political leaders against the ANC or the party president.
He continues to argue unequivocally that Jean Pierre Fabre is best placed to carry the torch of opposition political parties in the event of a single candidacy. He is at all times at the side of his president to whom he offers his advice on the field of campaign. The whole objective of his commitment is to see Jean Pierre Fabre wear at the head of Togo. But on the evening of 22 February, against all odds, the former leader of the opposition ends up with 4% of the vote.
At UNIR, a duo composed of Mr. Bawara Gilbert and Trimua Christian play the role of kingmakers for candidate Faure Gnassingbé. They are the team that goes up to the media to praise candidate Faure if not the record of his fifteen years at the helm of Togo.
They defend their champion with their own souls to the point of engaging in crude and false speculation. Salting their reputations to restore the image of their messiah is a good business for them. They proudly maintain that Faure Gnassingbé is the only enlightened man capable of leading Togo at present. They are serene and already see Faure’s triumph in the presidential election on 22 February. And precisely, they were the ones who were right about everyone. They elected their leader with more than 72% of the vote. Faure Gnassingbé was elected President of the Togolese Republic.
Everyone has their kingmaker. But it is up to the people to decide as a last resort.
Professor Wolou is accompanied by his wife for the campaign. Mr. Azibli was on all fronts to extol the merits of her husband, whom she presents as the one who has the skills to find solutions to the problems of Togolese. The lawyer by profession was unable to elect her husband on the evening of 22 February, but she played her score for the campaign; she is also a kingmaker.
Amos DAYISSO
www.independantexpress.net
