By Clifford Ndujihe
Prof. Pat Utomi, SDMPThe two-time presidential candidate is a journalist, political economist, management lecturer, entrepreneur and social activist.

In the last couple of months, Utomi, who has been in the vanguard to rally the progressives together, emerged as the consensus candidate of the Social Democratic Mandate Party, SDMP, led by Chief Olu Falae with the backing of first civilian governor of Lagos State, Alh. Lateef Jakande.

The SDMP is a platform fashioned by 15 progressive parties out of the 63 registered political parties.

Born February 6, 1956, the 55-year old Utomi is a feloow of the Institute of Management Consultants of Nigeria and director Lagos Business School (Pan African University). He first ran for the presidency in 2007 on the banner of the African Democratic Congress,

ADC. Of the 25 presidential candidates he came ninth with 50,849 votes in a contest won by the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua with 24,638,063 votes.

Utomi has no governance experience but he caught his political teeth when, in his 20s, he served as  adviser to Second Republic President, Alh. Shehu Shagari.

Hailing from Delta Sate, he is so far, the only presidential candidate from the South-South geo-political zone apart from President Goodluck Jonathan. Aspiring on a the platform of a new party as he did in 2007, he has a huge task on his hands in terms of grassroots mobilisation and amassing of the necessary war-chest needed to win the polls. He is expected to make a better impact than he made in 2007.

Basorun Dele Momodu, NCP
The accomplished journalist, columnist, lecturer, publisher and social activist took observers by surprise when he joined the presidential race mid-2010.

Initially, he wanted to run on the plank of the Labour Party, LP but fell out with the LP leadership over payment of N10 million nomination fee, which he refused to pay. He defected to the National Conscience Party, NCP, where he last week won the presidential ticket at the party’s primaries in Lagos.

The 50-year old Osun State born technocrat holds a degree in Yoruba and a Masters in English Literature. He taught at the Oyo State College of Arts and Science, Ile Ife as a Youths Corps member and later became private secretary to the former Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Chief Akin Omoboriowo.. He was staff writer with African Concord Magazine up to 1993 when he joined late Chief M.K.O Abiola’s presidential campaign and got engaged in strategy and planning.

Following incessant harassments, arrests and detention that trailed the ‘June 12’ struggle, Momodu went into exile and was to start Ovation International, a celebrity magazine in 1998, in London.

Having been found in 1994, NCP is arguably one of the oldest political parties in the country even though it became a full-fledged political party in 2002 and is yet to win any political contest at any level.

Aspiring on the platform of such a party and being a first timer himself, Momodu has a high hurdle to scale. The late founder of the NCP, Chief Gani Fawehinmi, at the 2003 presidential polls could only garner 161,333 votes and came fifth in a crowd of 20 candidates in spite of his immense popularity among the citizenry. Momodu is expected to surpass this feat and how far he would go is question of time.

Hon John Dara, NTP
In his 50s, John Dara, is one of the presidential  candidates expected to light up the 2011 polls. He is contesting on the banner of the one-year old National Transformation Party, NTP Dara, who is Chairman/CEO at Africa Development Investment Ltd, attended  University of Benin and Imo State and has B.Ed (Hons), MBA , English, Management.

The Kwara State-born politician and strategist was a member of the 1995 Constitutional Conference, Vision 2010 and the 2005 National Political Reform Conference, NPRC and was part of late Chief M.K.O. Abiola’s presidential campaign in 1993.

Faced with the hurdle of funds and surmounting established political forces as represented by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, etc, Dara urged the electorate not to repeat the mistake of failing to choose the right leaders to fast track the country’s development efforts.

Stating that he remained the best choice for rejuvenating the country, he said:“We do not need to re-circle past leaders who have failed us. We do not need to invest our hopes on people who are part of our past failing. We need new leaders who can lead Nigeria to the comity of nations.”