A new political group known as ‘Youth Party’ aimed at salvaging Nigeria from the failures of the past, has entered the political fray promising to deliver primarily on a three-point agenda which will help close “the wide gap between the rich and the poor.”
Disclosing this at a media chat in Lagos, the party said it is out to give Nigerians quality basic education, quality public healthcare, and social housing. It promised to promote one Nigeria by ‘de-emphasising ethnicity and amplifying those things that bring citizens together.’
At the briefing, the party officials: Chairman, Chukwudi Adiukwu, National Policy and Strategy Secretary, Wale Rokosu, National Secretary, Muhammed Ahmad, and Publicity Secretary, Ekenemoh Ilamosi, took turns to sell the party agenda ahead of the 2019 elections.
The party said it is presenting a platform for the youths in Nigeria, who, because of the restrictive policies of the existing 68 political parties, have not had space, the encouragement, and the opportunity to participate in politics.
Besides, it affirmed that it is high time the youths rise in their numbers to take over from the elderly ones who apparently do not have the magic wand to deliver the country from numerous woes enveloping it.
Youth Party, which said it started in 2015 as a movement, prides itself as the only ‘organic party’ designed to groom the youths from the ground and turning them into leaders with all the trappings of a transformer.
“We intend to promote discipline; we will soon make our manifesto public, and this has quantifiable goals,” the party said.
On whether it intends to field a presidential candidate for the 2019 elections, the party said it would soon make this public, but noted that it is not running a sprint, but a marathon. “Our major aim is to encourage the youths to participate in politics, and we are doing this by getting students in the tertiary institutions to get actively involved.”
The party said it has almost completed the process of registration, although it has not collected its certificate from INEC and boasts offices in over 28 states of the federation. The party intends to uphold gender friendliness by encouraging women to join. It promotes crowd funding, so nobody hijacks the party while it also helps synergy between the old and the young because of the wisdom of the aged.
However, the party noted that as much as possible, it will avoid the pitfalls of the past by running a truly national party that is driven by the youths and is all-inclusive.