The Coalition of all National Youth Leaders of Political Parties in Nigeria, on Friday urged political parties to commit to youth affirmative action to enhance their participation in the 2019 elections.
The Convener of the group, Mr Olawole Olakunle in a statement in Abuja said that the affirmative action would ensure that youths participated fully in violent-free general elections.
Olakunle said that the group comprised youth leaders of political parties in Nigeria.
He said that the clamour for youth affirmative action was borne out of the desire by young people to push for increased youth’s participation in politics.
This he said was after the signing into law of the Not-Too-Young-To-Run bill to enhance youth’s participation in politics.
“We are advocating a youth affirmative action that ensures youth inclusion in governance, support for youth candidacy, youth inclusion in political party internal structure (NEC) and the inclusion of women in governance.
“We have been deliberating on important issues that propagate the interest of young people in the Nigerian political space.
“Armed with a collaborative effort to deliver an agenda for youthful participation before, during and after the 2019 general elections, the group resolved to an affirmative pact.’’
Olakunle said that the “affirmative pact’’ would lay the groundwork for youth involvement in the schematics of governance post-2019 general elections.
He said that the group’s focal objective was to promote genuine inclusiveness for young people in the governance structure of Nigeria either in the political party organ or in government parastatals and ministries.
According to him, this is because the group believes that young people whose capacity and intellect are pivotal to nation-building have been relegated to the backstage in the schematics leading to Nigeria’s governance structure.
He said that the group highlighted some demands in a bid to articulate the affirmative action that would become the pact that political actors and stakeholders committed to before and after the 2019 general elections.
Olakunle said that one of the demands was that young people with profiled capacity between ages 18 to 40 would get appointed into critical positions in the build up to the country’s governance structure in 2019.
He said that the group also wanted young people to form a minimum of 40 per cent of the federal and state cabinet after the 2019 elections.
Olakunle said the group desired that youths be elected into substantial positions at least 40 per cent in political parties’ National Executive Committees in other to be part of the decision-making process.
He called for massive support for youth candidates across board irrespective of differences in political parties as long as there was a proven track record of competence and intellectual capacity.
Olakunle said that the group, however, advised young people to shun violence in the build up to the 2019 general elections.
He said the group urged Nigerian youths to join in the bid to make sure that the Not-Too-Young-To-Run bill was strategically implemented by ensuring that young people were part of the build-up of government cabinet.
According to him, the group is convinced that this would increase youth capacity and prepare young people for governance.
Olakunle said that the group promised to get the commitment of all presidential candidates and governorship aspirants in terms of commitment to the youth affirmative action.
This, he said should be done before young people would vote for such candidates in the 2019 general elections. With additional reports by NAN
