Yiaga Africa has charged young people to leverage on accurate data in developing an effective campaign that promotes transformative leadership.
Director of Programs, Cynthia Mbamalu said this on Tuesday in Sokoto, during a political organising lab for young candidates running for offices in Sokoto, Zamfara and Kebbi states.
The Political Organising Training to empower women and young people running for offices in the 2023 general elections, with practical knowledge and organising skills required to organize campaigns and building movements around issues of interest.
She said, “while the northwest region provides for 28% of youth candidates in the country, Sokoto has 137 young candidates running for state assemblies. We hope to have more young people winning elections”.
According to Mbamalu, Nigeria’s democracy needs to have the people’s representative saying, if young people are the majority of Nigeria’s population, then we should have younger people in office.
“The goal of political organizing is to be more practical in discussing effective campaigns, identifying capacities you need to build communication strategies that can help you communicate with your constituencies”, she said.
She also advised young people to use accurate data to run their elections campaigns by identifying the number of Local Government, polling units, registered voters in their constituents and every other information needed to win elections.
“The lab is also an opportunity to develop strategies to build campaigns that promote transformative leadership to show that young people have the competence, capacity and the character to provide the leadership that the people desire”, she enthused.
The Political organizing lab also profiles the story of young people that won elections and also looks at how to support young people to run and win elections because the 2023 elections ought to be elections for the youths. We want young people to be familiar with elections day operations and procedure from opening of polls, closing and result transmission and strategic ways to work with your campaign teams and party agents”, she said
Also speaking, Professor of Political Science in the Usman Danfodio University, Prof Suleiman Kuna decried the challenges young people face in politics while urging them to unite together to achieve their purpose.
During his interaction with young candidates on the dynamics of youth participation, Prof Kuna admitted that democracy and elections require huge financial investment saying this has impacted on youth participation.
“The youth must unite together and confront these challenges irrespective of political party affiliation”, Prof Kuna said. According to him, youths require hard work, resilience and perseverance to confront the challenges.
While re-echoing the rigorous competition young people must fight against, Special Adviser to the Sokoto State Governor on Youth matters, Hon. Nuradeen Harande Mahe said the political organizing lab is timely to boost young peoples’ emergence into public offices.
He expressed optimism that 2023 will be better in terms of youth inclusion in politics saying “young people should be part of decision making in both legislative and executive positions”.
Hon Nuradeen advised young people not to relent in their effort and continue to campaign vigorously by calling their fellow youths to support them, saying young people are the majority of the voters in Nigeria.
“Come up with an enticing agenda that will help to solve challenges of young people in your constituency”, he said.
He also urged them to remain honest and stay true to their promises before and after winning elections. “Young people need to prove to Nigerians that politicians can be trusted”, he concluded.
