Femi Gbajabiamila, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, has given Nigerian youth advice on how to pick their chosen candidate to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari in the upcoming general elections in 2023.
The congressman urged students and working-class young to cast their votes for and against the 18 candidates running for president in the upcoming election, saying that the role of youths cannot be minimized or overemphasized in the nation’s dealings.
According to Anaedoonline.ng, Gbajabiamila made the call while hosting the national executive of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), which is led by its president, Usman Barambu, in Abuja yesterday.
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According to reports, the NANS executives paid a formal visit to the lawmaker’s office in the National Assembly to express their gratitude for ending the eight-month Academic Staff Union of Universities strike (ASUU).
During the courtesy visit, Gbajabiamila spoke to the youths and advised them to be thoughtful when selecting a presidential candidate from the list that will appear on the ballot for the 2023 election.
The Speaker urged Nigerian youngsters to seize the chance to choose the country’s new political leaders on their terms, which could only happen if they participated fully in the electoral process.
Gbajabiamila in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Lanre Lasisi, highlighted the importance of the Nigerian youth in national development, saying, “You are a very important segment of Nigeria for national development. The role of youth in society cannot be overemphasised because you play a very critical role in what happens in this country now and in the future. It is important you understand that we recognise the importance of your place in national development.”
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Although the lawmaker acknowledged that there were three front-runners for the 2023 presidential race, he urged the young people to carefully examine the backgrounds of all eighteen party candidates who were interested in unseating the current administration.
Since the nation’s future was at risk, Gbajabiamila insisted that students could not afford to remain disengaged from the presidential election process.
He said, “Well, for me, you (students) have a lot to do between now and election day.
“In the next three, or four months, you have a lot to do. What I mean is that you have to now begin to look at things differently, be able to look at things the way they are done in other climes, where people will look at things when it comes to politics and elections.
“What do I mean by that? We have so many candidates, not three, not four. People talk about having three frontrunners, perhaps, but as far as I’m concerned, we have 18 candidates running for the President of this country, and I don’t think you should overlook any one of them. You should not. What I want you to do, as is done in advanced democracies, is to look objectively, and this is what is done in other countries, people run on their records.”
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He added: “If a candidate does not have a record to run on and is talking about something else, it means that he doesn’t have a record to run on. The good thing is that most of the candidates, at least the frontrunners, have records. I’m not pitching for anybody here but look at their records. If you feel he deserves to be the President of Nigeria, please, do not hesitate. Vote for that person based on his record.
“Two of them have been governors for eight years, that’s the only record they have.
“One has been the vice president for eight years. So, there are records. Vote for records. Every candidate must run on his record. And I believe the way you have been equipped mentally, I have interacted with so many of you, I believe you’re savvy enough to be able to, in spite of all the noise and the smokescreen, zero in on the right person for Nigeria.”
The House of Representative Speaker further asked the youths to also pray as they consider their preferred candidates.
He charged the youths to pray to God for guidance in making the right choice.
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“I believe that it’s going to be a watershed moment in Nigeria and I believe that is exactly what is going to happen. That is the only charge I have for you today because that’s the most important thing before us in Nigeria right now,” Gbajabiamila said in the statement.
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