2015: Youths march against bad leaders, demand peaceful election

From Akilani Abdullah and Alice Ajakaye, Lagos

A youth political pressure group, the Advocates for Collective Transformation (ACT) yesterday in Lagos marched in their hundreds to reject bad leaders in Nigeria, while demanding peaceful election in the forthcoming general election.

The group, which rises against corruption and corrupt leaders in a bid to save the youths, who have been said overtime to be the leaders of tomorrow, said their mission is to make informed decisions in positioning the right leaders to elective offices at all levels in the country come2015.

The group warned that the Nigeria masses are tired of the same faces of the ruling elites that has been in the centre-stage of running the country’s political and economic activities since it gained its independence, albeit running ‘stomach infrastructure’ and ‘lootocracy’.

Speaking at the rally to commensurate this year’s independence anniversary at Yaba area of Lagos state yesterday, the National President of ACT, Comrade TayoFashogbon said the rally is to sensitize Nigerian youths on peaceful participation in electoral process ahead of the 2015 general election.

He said Nigerian youths are frustrated with bad leadership, corruption in the country. His words: “We want to sanitize people and the youths to choose right leader into the rightful positions. Our future lies in voting the right candidates. The only thing Nigeria lacks is good leadership, we are not going to import leaders from abroad. We need good leaders within, we wants to make use of our 70million votes in choosing good leaders into elective offices.

“The youths must be enlightened on using their voting strength to position right leaders in government offices at all levels in Nigeria. We want credible candidates and not money bags; we want leaders that will bring back quality education, create jobs and crush poverty, because bad leaders are worse than Ebola virus. Our future lies in voting.

“Nigerians, particularly youths, are faced with various challenges, ranging from acute unemployment, poverty, defective educational standard; lack of social welfare and in most cases, total abandonment and systematic exclusion from all the commanding height of governance in the affairs that border on Nigerian youths’ interest. These trends must not be allowed to continue in the new independent year.” Fashogbon said.

The rally, which had students of various tertiary institutions in the South-West, also called on the federal government to immediately reverse the 4000 on-line registration for the National Youth Service Corps scheme.