The General Overseer, Sure Word International Ministry, United Kingdom, Victor Ubani, has called on Nigerians to ‘cast a prayerful vote for integrity over identity’ as the 2027 ballot inches closer.

In a statement, he urged citizens to jettison identities such as ethnicity and religion but go for exemplary character that can pull the country out of the ashes of hardship and catapult it to El Dorado.

The UK-based cleric made reference to the ancient Greek imagination, where society was described in terms of three broad dispositions: the idiot, the tribesman and the citizen.

According to him, the categories are blunt but useful – especially when one tries to make sense of leadership, followership and the moral choices that shape a nation’s story.

For him, the ‘idiot’ is not merely someone lacking intelligence; rather, a person committed to private advantage above the public good, while the ’tribesman’ is the person who defines truth and loyalty primarily by group identity.

Then the ‘citizen’, he added, is the person who understands that a shared society demands shared responsibility: integrity over impulse, service over self, and the common good over narrow gain.

He stated, "When I look at the political climate in many places today, I find it difficult to describe a ‘typical politician’ as a citizen in the Greek sense. Too often, what we witness is not public service, but public performance; not stewardship, but spectacle.

“Political movements can drift into being little more than tribes assembled around personality, grievance, or ambition – tribesmen rallied and mobilised by leaders whose primary talent is self-promotion. And populism becomes just a polite term for whipping up people’s sectional grievances while ignoring the policy nuances necessary for addressing needs in multifarious societies.”

Bringing his experience from the outside world to bear, the pastor said familiar patterns could be seen even on saner climes, where a leader who thrives on division, and supporters who excuse what they would condemn in anyone outside their group abound.

“The ‘idiot’ figure rarely succeeds alone; he requires tribesmen: people willing to trade discernment for belonging, and principle for the thrill of ‘our side’ prevailing.

“Bringing this reflection home to Nigeria, it is painful to admit how much our national progress has been slowed, even truncated, by this alliance of the inward-looking leader and the uncritical loyalist. Nations are not destroyed only by foreign enemies; they can also be weakened by internal habits: the normalisation of corruption, the tolerance of incompetence, the celebration of impunity, and the quiet surrender of moral standards in exchange for temporary advantage,” he explained.

However, he still sees hope in Nigeria.

“Yet Nigeria is not without hope. Hope begins with a demand (firm, clear and consistent) for citizen-leaders: men and women who are governed by conscience, restrained by humility, and compelled by a vision larger than themselves.

“Hope also requires citizen-followers. A citizenry is not merely a population; it is a people who refuse to be bought, bullied or distracted from what is right. This is why your vote matters. In the next general election, see your vote as a kind of prayer – not a superstition, but a moral and spiritual act. It is a petition expressed through participation: a prayer for leaders who fear God, honour truth, and pursue justice; a prayer for a political culture where competence is valued, character is examined, and service is expected,” he added.