A New Dawn For Nigerians As INEC Registers Youth Party

There is a new dawn for Nigerians as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) finally registers Youth Party as announced on Tuesday, August 14, 2018. Confirming this in Lagos, Ms. Ilamosi Ekenimoh, the National Publicity Secretary of Youth Party, said that the journey started as far back as 2014, when a group of young Nigerians decided to birth a new generation political platform to serve and unite Nigerians. According to Ms. Ekenimoh, the Youth Party is set to expand the restrictive democratic space through transparent political leadership and followership that eschews money politics, bribery, violence, rigging and corruption. The Party’s ideals and policies will focus on developing and improving the standard of living of all Nigerians. Ms. Ekenimoh noted that the Party aims to rebuild Nigeria through generational change in political leadership, one that emphasizes skill, capability, religious harmony over age or ethnicity and religious divisions.

Speaking at the Party office in Abuja, the Acting National Chair of the Youth Party, Mr. Suleiman Usman Yusuf, assured Nigerians that the Youth Party would bring about the much-awaited new dawn to Nigerian politics and development as a whole. He further explained that the cardinal agenda of the Party which includes quality basic education, universal healthcare, social housing, and commitment to internal democracy will give Nigerians the opportunity to express themselves and determine the Nigeria of their future. He allayed the concerns that the Youth Party was founded solely to represent and protect the interests of the youth. Mr. Yusuf maintained that the Party is not ageist and it is open to Nigerians of all age and background: the name symbolizes the creativity, tenacity and strength of the Nigerian youth and it plans to leverage and put these qualities front and center. He also revealed that the Party has presence in about 28 states of the federation including Lagos and Abuja and over 5,664 members prior to registration. He believed that now that the registration has been approved, it will allow the Party to increase its followership and impact.

While expressing joy over this development, the National Secretary of Youth Party, Mr. Mujaheed Salisu Ahmad, stated that the Party believes in politics of reason and reform against anger and populism. According to him, the Party is committed to service-oriented political leadership and grooming of future leaders.

Key players in Nigerian political landscape have described the emergence of Youth Party as a positive development and a Party to watch, because the movement is not founded by career politicians but by people of different backgrounds pledging to one moral ideological goal - to serve and unite Nigerians.