A Northern political pressure group, the Northern Youth Forum (NYF), has carpeted the leader of a relatively unknown youth group, Northern Youth Leaders Forum, that purportedly endorsed a number of candidates and running mates for the 2023 presidency.
Northern Youth Leaders Forum (NYLF), led by Comrade Elliot Afiyo, had granted interviews to some national dailies, announcing a long list of candidates for presidency and running mates, majorly serving APC governors from the North.
The NYF, in a terse media statement signed by its Sokoto State Chapter Chairman, Abdullahi Goronyo, took exception to the “claims of the endorsement widely reported in the media and attributed to one Mr. Efiyo, leader of a certain Northern Youth Leaders Forum (NYLF) days ago,” describing it as hogwash.
The NYF called on “Northerners of good conscience not to fall into the trap of what is actually a new group driven by political gold-diggers and opportunists imposing their own angle for cheap fortunes ahead of 2023 prematurely”.
NYF noted that “neither Mr. Afiyo nor his co-travellers in this handpicking of presidential candidates game have the mandate of the Northern youth to take such a hasty but weighty decision and even proceed to draw a list of candidates, while deliberately pushing the Northeast to the front burner”.
The NYF said Afiyo is not the spokesman of the youths and having not laiased with any umbrella body of recognized Northern youth groups, has therefore no powers to draw a list and rush to the press because “such a move would create the wrong signal that it was a collective decision built upon consultation with all relevant stakeholders, when in reality it is not”.
Alhaji Goronyo, in the statement, called on Northern youths to “concentrate on generating new ideas against 2023, especially in the choice of presidential and other candidates through massive political enlightenment and avoid unnecessary roadshow in the media so early.”
NYF rejected “in totality, the use obsecure Northern youth groups to either fly a kite for some power-hungry elite or desperate search for undue attention, in such a hasty manner that suggests crass oppprtunism”.