Older People Should Not Dominate Nigerian Politics - Former Envoy
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A former ambassador to the Scandinavian countries; Sweden, Denmark and Norway and a retired permanent secretary, Dr Godknows Igali, described as disturbing on Saturday a pattern of Nigerian politics where the elderly still played the leading roles, while in many countries, young aspirants dominated the political space.
He also called on Nigerians to vote for candidates who have positive ideas and track records in the 2023 elections.
Igali, who is also pro-chancellor and chairman of the board of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, raised the concern in an interview with reporters during a small- Lunch Seminar titled "Let's Talk Politics 2.0", with the theme "2023 and Beyond: Leadership, Politics and Civic Engagement", hosted by St. James's Anglican Church, Asokoro in Abuja.
He said: "I raised fundamental questions about the shape of political party primaries because some trends were a bit troubling. While many countries have young candidates, there are still a lot of gerontocracy in ours.
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"Older people still play the leading roles. I have also expressed concerns that there are very few female candidates that have emerged unlike other countries where women are becoming very cardinal I also have problems on the question of money. In the primaries, you saw that money played a major role and I thought that it was necessary to look for competent candidates.
"I also raised a question about the place of manifesto, the place of ideas or thoughts. Nigerian citizens should choose candidates who have positive ideas. In the future, let us look for candidates who have ideas and their backgrounds. This idea that people let themselves be influenced by money, you will have eight years to regret it. You have eight years of your mouth shut."
Igali also called on the church and other religious organizations to work with the Independent National Electoral Commission, enlighten the electorate on the dangers of vote buying to ensure that votes count in the 2023 elections.
"So I think churches and Islamic leaders in mosques need to work with INEC and enlighten our people and tell them, 'don't give up, keep trying.' I think that's the message, people shouldn't just say, 'let me raise money, it doesn't matter.' No, it's important now that we have the BVAS, hope and pray that the BVAS will work properly and if they work properly, that means every vote will count,” he stressed.
Please share this story:
A former ambassador to the Scandinavian countries; Sweden, Denmark and Norway and a retired permanent secretary, Dr Godknows Igali, described as disturbing on Saturday a pattern of Nigerian politics where the elderly still played the leading roles, while in many countries, young aspirants dominated the political space.
He also called on Nigerians to vote for candidates who have positive ideas and track records in the 2023 elections.
Igali, who is also pro-chancellor and chairman of the board of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, raised the concern in an interview with reporters during a small- Lunch Seminar titled "Let's Talk Politics 2.0", with the theme "2023 and Beyond: Leadership, Politics and Civic Engagement", hosted by St. James's Anglican Church, Asokoro in Abuja.
He said: "I raised fundamental questions about the shape of political party primaries because some trends were a bit troubling. While many countries have young candidates, there are still a lot of gerontocracy in ours.
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"Older people still play the leading roles. I have also expressed concerns that there are very few female candidates that have emerged unlike other countries where women are becoming very cardinal I also have problems on the question of money. In the primaries, you saw that money played a major role and I thought that it was necessary to look for competent candidates.
"I also raised a question about the place of manifesto, the place of ideas or thoughts. Nigerian citizens should choose candidates who have positive ideas. In the future, let us look for candidates who have ideas and their backgrounds. This idea that people let themselves be influenced by money, you will have eight years to regret it. You have eight years of your mouth shut."
Igali also called on the church and other religious organizations to work with the Independent National Electoral Commission, enlighten the electorate on the dangers of vote buying to ensure that votes count in the 2023 elections.
"So I think churches and Islamic leaders in mosques need to work with INEC and enlighten our people and tell them, 'don't give up, keep trying.' I think that's the message, people shouldn't just say, 'let me raise money, it doesn't matter.' No, it's important now that we have the BVAS, hope and pray that the BVAS will work properly and if they work properly, that means every vote will count,” he stressed.
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