YOUTH INCLUSION IN POLITICS

According to the 8th Edition of the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, youth means young people considered as a group. The same dictionary defines inclusion as the action or state of including or of being included within a group or structure. According to Wikipedia, politics is the practice and theory of influencing other people on a global, civic or individual level. To show the importance of youths in the society, International Youth Day is observed annually on 12th August every year. It is meant as an opportunity for governments and others to draw attention to youth issues worldwide (Wikipedia).

It is generally believed that the youth form a larger part of the working population of any country and this speaks volume of the productivity level of any country. According to the National Bureau of Statistics in its 2012 national youth survey report; youths of working age, in the age bracket of 15 to 35 years are nearly 70 million persons in a population of 166 million Nigerians. The youth play significant roles in the politics of any nation regardless of their political affiliation. It is not uncommon to have a youth wing in political parties all over the globe. This implies that youths are indispensable in politics. Moreover politics cannot be complete without the youths playing active roles therein.

There is no nation that can isolate politics from her heritage. The birth or rebirth of a nation is premised on how she is able to withstand her political challenges. The youth must be ready to empower themselves to gain relevance in the nation so as to be able to play their roles in resolving the challenges. As such, there is the need to always put youth inclusion in politics in perspective to maximize a nation’s human resources.

The complete youth is a subset of a larger society where various socio-economic forces come to play. If the youths are actively engaged in politics, there is a high possibility of better governance. Once there is no foundation for the social security of the youths, there will be no strong political legacies instilled in them. And this will hamper the success of any nation.

There are numerous advantages attached to youth inclusion in politics. The bible made reference to one of the outstanding qualities of a youth – their strength. I liken strength here to passion for change. According to Proverbs chapter 20 verse 29, “the glory of young men is their strength.” When you have youths that are of high character in politics about which they are passionate, there will definitely be rapid growth and development in all sectors of the economy. Our youths are better performers in the area of sensitization and mobilization of the electorate during electioneering campaigns.

The vibrancy of youths makes them indispensable in politics. As such their inclusion in politics cannot be overemphasized. The energy of the youths if well channeled into politics will go a long way to affirm their relevance in the polity of the country in which they find themselves. For instance, the likes of Obafemi Awolowo, Anthony Enahoro, Ahmadu Bello and Nnamdi Azikwe were all youths when they led the struggle for the independence of Nigeria in the fifties. Their active participation in politics at that time in the country changed a lot of things in the political landscape of Nigeria. Their efforts gave birth to the independence of Nigeria in 1960.

I would like to make reference to a youth that made history based on his vibrancy and passion for a peaceful America. He is none other than the Baptist Church pastor and civil rights activist, Martin Luther King (Jr.). Martin Luther King (Jr.) made a difference in America several years ago even when very few people shared in his vision. It is on record that he led an historic March in Washington on August 28, 1963. It was there that King made his famous "I Have a Dream" speech; emphasizing his belief that someday all men could be brothers.

Another advantage of youth inclusion in politics is the access to information. Politics thrives on information not propaganda. With the advent of the internet and the social media, youths have virtually an unrestricted access to information and this paves way for the sophistication and robustness of their knowledge base. The youth in any population is an asset for national growth and development. There is no gainsaying in the fact that the youths are in the productive stage of their lives. They need proper orientation from the adults in order to approach politics with a positive mentality. Youth Agencies and Civil Rights Groups have to come in this regard to ensure that the youth make impact in politics and governance.

Generally, youths have innovative ideas and are passionate for change in any capacity they find themselves. The much desired change in the political landscape can only happen if the efforts of the youths are encouraged by the larger society. The youth need to be given a chance to make use of their intellect. The young professionals from various educational backgrounds make meaningful impacts in the economy by way of contesting for elections and being appointed into political offices. A passion to serve and move Nigeria towards her destiny must be at the centre of their hearts.

While there may be numerous advantages of youth inclusion in politics, there are also few disadvantages to the phenomenon of youth inclusion in politics. Many youths have been sidelined though they have what it takes to be change agents in politics. The youth face poverty, barriers to education, multiple forms of discrimination and limited employment prospects and opportunities. The human capacity of any nation really lies in her youths. This is however threatened by the challenges aforementioned and that is why many of the youths are now being used as political thugs in many developing nations.

The educationally disadvantaged youths in the society will surely be a tool for political violence if allowed to participate in it. We see this happening almost every day in the context of Nigerian politics. The uneducated youths become veritable tools in the hands of political godfathers who only want to serve their interest at every level of governance. Youth inclusion in politics becomes a curse when there is a higher population of youths without adequate formal education in the political system.

Education is a tool for enlightenment and it must be given utmost priority by our leaders. Likewise, the war against poverty must be in place in order to make youth inclusion a blessing to our generation. According to Rethink Nigeria Group, the concept of youth as leaders of tomorrow has constricted a very important social category to the political fringe and reduced a demographic majority to political minority. This has not helped matters and this leaves a lot to be desired in our polity as a nation. At the ongoing National Conference, the youth was just a minority of the entire 492 delegates. According to Toyosi Akerele (Founder/CEO, Rise Networks) in The Guardian Newspaper publication of March 18, 2014, the National Association of Nigerian Students has six slots, the National Youth Council of Nigeria has six slots and other youth organizations have six slots, altogether 18 of the entire 492 delegates. That is an abysmal 0.4% of the population of the delegates.

In Nigeria today, youths are already aspiring to make a difference because they are much more enlightened. This is the right time for the youths to arise and challenge the status quo of being left to dance to the tune of unscrupulous elders who try to lure the youths into political vices like violence, rigging, ballot snatching, multiple voting and other electoral malpractices. Without highly educated, highly literate, highly skilled, intellectually brilliant and self-confident youth, a nation is toying with its future, and undermining its existential capacity (Jaye Gaskia, 2014). According to the 2012 Fact Sheet by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP): “Effective and meaningful youth political participation has one of three attributes: it can be consultative; it can entail youth-led participation, where young people have a direct impact on decision-making within their own youth communities; finally it can involve youth collaborative participation, where young people effectively take part in regular political decision-making processes.”

Now than ever, there exists the need for a platform that will articulate the political and economic demands of youths. The platform will be ready to articulate the generalized condition of youths, and will actively engage with the political processes, including political parties and electoral processes promoting the interests of youths. Nigeria would achieve greater heights if we can make the youths relevant in the polity. Attaining purposeful political leadership by the youths beyond their inclusion must be seen as the beacon of hope for the youth and their active participation in politics.