My Letter to Nigerian Youths on the 2015 Presidential Election – By Ariyo Dare Atoye

Dear Nigerian Youth Let Our Future Decide This!

Fellow Compatriots, the indomitable youths of our great nation, I sincerely salute your courage and robust participation in the current political/electoral process. We are 16 years into the fourth and the longest republic in our democratic journey. The first, second and the third republics were all truncated by the military junta at different times. These obviously denied our nation and the people the opportunity to learn from our mistakes and grow through the process of a seamless democratic journey.

We are a nation of history and purpose, of great men and women, strong and determined. We have risen from military rules stronger and our generation is freer to write our own future, than any other generation before us. We are by far the luckiest, experiencing the longest period where our rights to association and freedom of expression are not denied. Yet, I admit without reservation that it is not yet uhuru. It can be better and we must work to make it better.

More than ever before, we are confronted with the toughest of times in the making of a choice. Yes, a choice that will determine another four years of our journey as a nation. In this, I seek a sense of common purpose among the youth to drive our nation. It is good to unite and define our stake going forward into this election. This we must do for the sake of our future than getting too overly political. For it is essential that our future be the supreme determinant of our votes and participation.

We may have offended one other in the course of the ongoing campaigns. We may have used unprintable words on the social media arena. We have seen frayed nerves. But we can forgive. Yes, we can forgive and work together to build a greater nation. It is the best thing to do and it is the best way to go. This nation awaits us; it awaits us because 20 per cent of our capacity is yet not exploited. It awaits us because we have plenty to give to it. We have hope because we have the potential to make Nigeria first among equals. Yes, we have the capacity to make Nigeria the Eagle of the world. This is the story of our hope.

As a nation, we have our challenges. Unfortunately, many have mistakenly narrowed them to insurgency and corruption. However, I say emphatically that our challenges are far beyond that. The biggest of our concerns today is how to evolve a New Nigeria beyond oil or a prosperous nation without oil. This should be the crux of our debate and the change we seek. This election should be about our future and oil is not going to secure it for us. So far, the campaign promises are not achievable with revenue from oil. This is the true picture of today. Every country, the world over is looking away from oil with emphasis on alternative sources of revenue. Let us work for a future beyond oil. Others have done it, we can do it and by the Grace of GOD, we will even do it better.

It is said that “ideas rule the world”. Therefore, the real and big deal is to have an economy driven by practical ideas, with greater emphasis on what we can produce and export. We need an economy that will create millions of jobs yearly and produce a stronger middle-class. A Nigeria beyond oil or without oil is possible. Therefore, the change that we seek should significantly capture how to diversify our economy and create wealth; not a change for the sake of political power grab only. How can we sustain what Akinwumi Adesina is doing with Agriculture? How can we do much more?  Agriculture is gradually returning as a serious business venture of wealth creation in Nigeria as against a means of survival. How can we make it a mega business for bigger revenue generation beyond oil? Can we again look in the way of Agricultural revolution? We can be sure of two things: food security and wealth creation.

Our approach to combating the menace of corruption has been faulty until recently. We had preferred a reactionary approach than preventive. This is the reason we fight corruption and it reacts back. Can we create more technological platforms like the E-Wallets in Agriculture and IPPIS in the federal civil service to prevent corruption? Can we adopt technology on all platforms to prevent stealing? Can we ensure all activities are tracked with technology? No system can be 100 per cent foolproof but definitely can be a big step towards its eradication.

Fellow youths, the seed of extremism and wickedness was sown in our land some decades ago by those who did not wish our future well. Over the years, the seed has germinated and grown into insurgency and terrorism. Evil birthed in our country. The tree of terrorism now harbours disgruntled elements who unleash terror on our land. Never, in our history have we been confronted with monsters that seek to redefine who we are, as Boko Haram has. This devilish group is plotting to curtail our liberty and challenge our very heterogeneous existence. Christians, Muslims, the free born and all those who believe in a free world are their targets. But in our collective resolve, they will never succeed.

When a young Nigerian was arrested in the abortive underwear bombing on a U.S. plane, we did not acquiesce with the reality that terrorism had entered our shore. Rather, we pushed the blame somewhere else. We never got ourselves thinking, to prepare for the unfortunate fate that was coming to befall us. Reports abound on how individuals and groups hiding under religion were trained in Sudan, Yemen, Afghanistan, Cuba and Pakistan for years. Yet, we did practically nothing as a people to arrest this.

Terrorism can be prevented if the seed is not allowed to be sown or germinate. It can be prevented if it is nipped in the bud and not allowed to survive. However, terrorism is difficult to eradicate or defeat once it is in a land. No nation has successfully defeated and eradicated terrorism in the immediate, sometimes decades. Unfortunately today, we are face-to-face with this satanic monster.

As we march to decide another four years of democratic governance, we are again faced with a clique of leaders who want to decide for us. Unfortunately, when they were in the saddle, they did little or nothing to prevent the seed of extremism from being sown, or stop it from growing. Unfortunately, these leaders have held power since 1976; they have never allowed the ‘Eagle’ to soar. If they were full of wisdom and capacity to decide the best for us, as they now claimed, will we have been this challenged? Can they give what they have not? The thinking is yours and mine.

Nevertheless, we still appreciate the contributions of our past leaders to our nation; they will remain our elder-statesmen. A nation is developed by the wisdom of the old and the strength of the young. Therefore, we will continue to consult them when the need arises. However, we will only choose what is suitable from whatever wisdom they offer. Had they done the right thing in power, we will be far ahead of where we are today. Yet we still have hope.

They operated a patronage system, determined what they thought we should get and presided over our collective patrimony like a private enterprise. Sadly, they consigned our future to oil and jettisoned an economy driven by ideas even when the Asian Tigers emerged. For decades, they held our nation down and dictated our choice at will. They did nothing significant to repair our fault lines. They did nothing tangible to help our nation to overcome its numerous challenges.  But we have hope.

Let me remind you of what some of you know. They always sarcastically admit that they are on the departure lounge but only use it to distract us. Contrarily, they have remained active on the scene just because they have one mega plan left; they want a nation that will be dictated by their children and families. We served them and they want us to again serve their children. But remember the words of George Bernard Shaw: “Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything”. The choice is ours because we have hope.

Shall we not ask them if leadership is all about power for the sake of power? Do they have moral grounds to tell us who to elect as we go to the polls in February? Are they honestly placed to tell us the truth about our future? If they had done the right thing and helped our nation, will we still be having huge infrastructure gaps? Will we be faced with several economic challenges? Will we be confronted with terrorism?

Today, they are granting interviews and trying to steal the show and shine from us. They have turned their homes to a mecca of sort for selfish political consultation to grab power and decide the destiny and future of our dear nation. Our future is no longer in their hands, and it is up to we the youth to decide our future. It is up to the great people of this nation to consign them into the dustbin of history, where they rightfully belong. Shall we not have them retired to their abode in peace? Let us tell them we have grown to decide and choose who will lead us without recourse to them. As Margaret Mead once said: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has”.

Fellow Compatriots, let us focus on building a new Nigeria where the knowledge of the South and the strength of the North will complement the other to build a virile nation. Let us avoid the distraction of the old men who are only interested in using their selfish interest to destroy the fabrics of our dear country. Nigeria is the only country we can call our nation, not even Europe or America. Nigeria is our home and we must never allow it to collapse. But I have this patriotic assurance that Nigeria will survive the current conspiracies contradictions orchestrated by our past leaders and build on our individual and collective ingenuity to make it a land of our dream.

I seek not to stand on the fence without offering a direction. This election is beyond President Goodluck Jonathan and Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. This election is about your future and my future. It is about making a choice and playing your part for a course that is worth standing for – youth emancipation. “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or if we wait for some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek” – Barack Obama.

In our closet, in our quiet moment, in our heart of hearts, let us do a deep introspection about our nation. I have followed all the campaigns diligently and observed the key words and conviction of actions. Time and chance have revealed much and I have not made a mistake. President Goodluck Jonathan still offers what is more plausible for the Nigerian youth, in the path that we seek. The change we need by our votes is to elect a man who believes in and trusts our future to make our choice. Yes we are the change.

According to U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria on the forthcoming elections, genuine change, the world over does not happen overnight but takes time. He says: “Change through the democratic process is absolutely possible; it may not be as fast as you like, it may not happen overnight. It may take decades but it is absolutely possible. I know because I have seen it in my own country”. We should therefore be wary of those who are chanting the slogan of change and claiming to want to effect change overnight.

This is the first President that has made the youth the central focus of his campaign for re-election. No Nigerian leader living or dead has given the youth a better opportunity/representation in governance and empowerment better than Goodluck. Facts abound and do not lie. Therefore, let us support Jonathan to build a future for our nation, where the best of the North and the South meet to make Nigeria better. Jonathan may not be the best but he is far better for the future that we seek than those on parade.

Without prejudice to Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, if he has not deemed it worthy to mentor young Nigerians for leadership after 30 years of leaving power, certainly he can never be the change that we seek in the 21st century Nigeria. We do not need to be in power to mentor others; he could have at least assembled youth of like minds since he ventured into partisan politics since 2003 and mentor them to provide effective and purposeful leadership for our country. Yet I salute Buhari.

Jonathan too will be deemed a failure if after leaving office, he goes back to Otuoke and does nothing. Leaders should stand in the gap for the people. If Buhari had stood for polio with his goodwill in the North, our country would have been free of polio ever since. Great men are defined by the burden they bear for the people, not the power they seek, wield or control.

I will be the first to admit that we are not where we should be yet. Like Obama rightly observed in his recent State of the Union Address, “it has been, and still is, a hard time for many.” Our nation shares in this global burden of hardship. Globally, it is a tough time. But shall we, for the fear of hard times, seek solace in the past or seek alternative in uncertainty? If we trust Buhari with power and he fails, will we run to Gowon in 2019? If Gowon fails, will we wake up the ghost of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa in 2023? Can we overcome the burden of today by running away from our problems? Can we provide answers to these obvious questions in the affirmative? Therefore, we must be bold in facing the challenges that are currently confronting us as a nation and we must be resolute in facing them. If we desire a change in leadership, only a new idea and a new thinking will suffice. “

President Jonathan is the bridge between today and the future that we seek. We shall not retreat to Egypt because we met the Red Sea on the way. We shall not run back to the past because Boko Baram stares us in the face. While there were food and water in Egypt, with hard labour, it was never the same as the Promised Land – the land of prosperity. Our continuous march in this wilderness to the Promised Land will never be without challenges or resistance. Howbeit, we will overcome, not by looking backward but by trusting in the grace of GOD as we march on.

Fellow Nigerians, the history we are writing together may not remember Goodluck Jonathan as the man who revived our rail system and repaired and revamped our roads from death traps, due to the decades of neglect and decay. It may certainly forget his giant strides in Agriculture and the remodeling of our airports. But this history will tell the story of a young boy who emerged from the creeks of the Niger Delta, to become the President Nigeria. History will remember Jonathan as the man who gave hope to Modu, the son of Soroma, a tailor in the land of Bama, that he can govern Borno State.

This history will remember how Jamila, the daughter of Adakole, an Okada rider in Ankpa, Kogi State, read about the story of Jonathan and the opportunity he gave to women and made up her mind to become a woman of substance like Sarah Ochepe (Water Resources Minister). Jamila will be buoyed by the increased opportunities for women, who are today, rising to greatness and taking their rightful place in the country they had long been denied and neglected. That is what Jonathan represents to the common man of Nigeria – that a minority can do it.

Shall we return to the enclave of those who once oppressed us and curtailed our freedom because of the seeming problems of today? We carry the burden of history on our shoulders and generations yet unborn will call us weak and light-hearted if we make this mistake. 2019 is almost here but shall we not negotiate for the kind of leadership that we seek? Let us have a contract with Jonathan who can better be trusted to honour a contractual obligation.

The world is waiting on Nigeria. Europe, America and Asia have failed to drive a new world where peace and prosperity will be the order of the day. The world is looking up to Africa and Nigeria is the focus. Let us support the Federal Government to end the menace of terrorism and insecurity. This Eagle has the potential to lead the world. It is our destiny; we will not bow to the evil of conspiracy, gang-up and propaganda. Nigeria will flourish.

Dear compatriots, I write to you with a burden in my heart because when the birth of a child is due, labour is usually painful. But the moment the baby is delivered, the pain is forgotten by the unspeakable relief and joy that follow. We are at that junction of our national life and it is indeed a challenging moment for Nigeria. But let us make no mistake about it that if we endure, the expectant child will be delivered and a New Nigeria birthed. Nigeria will flourish again.

I know the Nigeria that I dream of as a youth and for my children. I will never trade this bright future for cheap propaganda of politics because I know where the shoe pinches and where it pains. I was not born with a metal spoon neither was I born with a silver one. I struggled to earn my first degree from the famous Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. I worked very hard to obtain my second degree at the prestigious University of Lagos. I have traversed the length and breadth of Nigeria from Lagos to Borno, Yola to Benin, Gombe to Osogbo and from Enugu to Jos.

I connect with the North and the South in the journey of life. I have built friendship across all divides. I was supported by my Hausa brothers and encouraged by Igbo friends. I have lived with Muslims and Christians under the same roof and I have accommodated friends from all parts of the country. This experience has widened my knowledge about Nigeria. Therefore, no matter how difficult our situation is, I prefer “liberty in danger” to “peace in slavery”. Let our future be the deciding factor in the collective decision we make come March 28.
–
Ariyo Dare ATOYE (Aristotle)
National Coordinator,
Democratic Young Patriots (DYP)
aristotle001us@yahoo.com
08030620882