I have been asked a bunch of times what I want to be in the future, mother can bet on banker, father thinks I’ll be a lawyer, friends probably expect business woman from the way I’m used to moving around, but I cannot define the shock in their eyes when I tell them “Politician”. Whether I mean this or not, now more than ever, the need for youths being in politics must be taken into consideration, but the question is, will those on seat pave way for the new?
We all fail to realize that the people that brought about the independence on Nigeria were all youths in their 20s and 30s and even leaving that aside, youths have and still are making waves in various areas of life despite the terrible unemployment situations in most parts of the world; the list in sports, movies, music and entertainment in general is endless including notable personalities like Ngozi Chimamanda Adichie, an African and internationally acclaimed writer whose books are winning literary awards and still at her youth, Emmanuel Macron at 39 who won the elections in France and Sebastian Kurz at 31 who was sworn in as Austria Chancellor alongside so many others.
The old ones who refuse to give way for the new and brighter generation must understand that Change is Constant and nothing lasts forever, one day, one way or the other, the seat must be vacated for the new and deserving. The younger generation must also move away from political apartheid and learn to love, defend and protect their society because these are the basic qualities of a leader. To solve the problems of the world in this generation, the answer is to start from the root, from the youth and await the positively developing results, a new dawn.
©Etoh Precious
