Fear of State Intimidation

.....During my 2021 attempt, I became disillusioned by my party policies and the increase in violent behaviour and decided to resign on moral grounds. My resignation letter did not get to its intended
recipient as there were forces at play to prevent it from being acknowledged. After being ‘quietly’ visited, I was advised to change my mind as I would not be allowed to ‘embarrass’ the president. I’m
a person who maintains my ground for what I believe in, as my close friends can attest, but I have come to believe that not all battles are worth fighting. I was not willing to subject my family to a series of
unknown risks and so I did as I was advised, of course, and went back to the constituency. I found a comfortable chair under the large cashew tree in the village square, had many light conversations and simply waited it out.

Three days after the results of my party’s loss were announced, I hand-delivered the same letter of resignation from the party with just a change of date and this time nobody cared. All eyes were on the incoming team.......