Since coming to self-realization, the popular cliche I have
always heard elders and political leaders use to pacify the youths in
Nigeria is that they are the “leaders of tomorrow”. The tomorrow that is
seemingly elusive. Going by this postulation of our elders, I fall into
the category of 'leaders of the day after tomorrow',since tomorrow in
this context is more likely to favour my brothers and sisters in their
30s and above.
Over the last couple of years, youths
through various platforms and mediums have constantly agitated for
inclusion in the scheme of things in their various political parties. A
quest which has not been completely successful;considering that some
political parties still have youth leaders whose ages are far above
what's stated in the National Youth Policy.
For youths to be
carried along in the political scheme of things, we must first identify
who a youth is. Presently the National Youth Policy recognizes a person
who is not older than 35 years as a youth. I have seen 50 year olds and
above being referred to as youths - this to me is one of the major
reasons why those within the recognized age range cannot be active
players in Nigeria's political sphere. If a 50 year old is a youth,then
an individual below 35 years can then be referred to as a 'baby', not
fit to sit with elders when decisions are made but good enough to do the
'dirty jobs' or run errands for handouts when the need arises.
This
mentality has constantly robbed our nation of ideas from the most
productive,adventurous and promising class of citizens, who after the
frustrating experiences of trying to get to the top abandon their
original values and beliefs for new ones,passed down by their elders as
the norms and criteria for being allowed into the 'inner chamber', a
situation that perhaps would have been different if these young persons
were carried along from the onset.
To a certain extent also, the
non inclusion of youths in the core activities of political parties, can
also be blamed on the youths, some of whom see certain minor privileges
accorded them by some politicians as the best they can ever get, to the
extent that some of these youths falsely consider themselves as kings
who are free to trample on their contemporaries. Elders and party
leaders capitalize on this flaw, making the youths belief that inclusion
is a rare privilege exclusively reserved for the chosen ones - a
situation that should not be so.
I do not know what structures
exist in our various political parties for youths to grow through the
ranks to the top,without being overwhelmed by circumstances(like change
in leadership,their party's loss of a state through elections etc), as
obtained in both the Democratic and Republican parties in the USA. The
only way youths can be prepared for higher responsibilities is by
entrusting them with lesser tasks. This way we are sure of producing
individuals READY to lead, not those to whom leadership is accidentally
thrust and are overwhelmed by the demands of such office.
In
conclusion,it is important that youths be involved in the core of
politics,as only a youth can interact and have a full grasp of the
challenges being faced by other youths in his/her generation. Nigeria
can boast of youths who are eminently qualified to be the 'leaders of
today', the energies of these young persons should be exploited to the
service of their fatherland, lest they channel such into activities that
may pose great danger to the nation state.
Enenim Ubon is on twitter @enenimubon
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