THE NIGERIAN YOUTH AS A POLITICAL TOOL: A TIME TO RETHINK - Prince Tai Adejorin

According to Dwight D. Eisenhower, "Politics ought to be the part-time profession of every citizen who would protect the rights and privileges of free people and who would preserve what is good and fruitful in our national heritage." As we all know that the light of any society is her youth. The youth shapens and sharpens the reverberation and productivity of any society. The youth is the major component of any nation and they occupy the largest space in her labour force.

The Nigerian youth have not come to terms with these facts. This is why our old elites and never-do-good politicians have always used us against one another maximally to their advantage and utterly to our disadvantage. They give us sophisticated weapons of all sorts and peanuts on the promise that we would do their bidding no matter how hard it is.

Some of these youth are set against their community to create chaos and cause menace basically to make sure that a politician (their paymaster) wins at all cost. Some are even sent to attack their relations - if possible to the point of death,  just to satisfy the selfish interest of a wicked and irresponsible politician.

Many of the destructive events of these youth are referred to in the future (without attachment to any politician) hereby creating hurdles to many and stopping them from attaining their desired height in life; due to the indelible mark of destruction and condemnation that their activities in the past have placed upon them.

Majority of these politicians send their kids and wives abroad to school, do business and live while they send you and I to go and die for all they care. They buy the latest books for their kids to read so they can lead when they retire and they buy the latest weapons for you and I to destroy us and render us useless all through life.

As they defuse you and I of every zeal and passion to prosper in life,  they infuse their kids with all the knowledge and facility money can buy which will later make them superior to us and continue to rule us from wherever their parents stop.

For how long are we going to remain fools? For how long are we going to irresponsibly leave our destinies in the hands of these selfish people? For how long are we going to keep calling black white simply to satisfy someone who does not even have our interest at heart? When shall we rise and take the bull by the horn and sincerely thread a path of responsibility and productivity?

If I must tell you, every politician needs you more than you need him. They keep treating us the same way because we allowed it. They know what to do but we don't allow them. They would have been accountable if truly we need them to be. They see us as contractors who can be paid at anytime to carry out a contract. And what is the contract? To make sure they attain a particular political height at all cost.

Many schools, bridges, roads, water projects and other infrastructures have been eaten as food and drunk as wine by the youth who collect money from politicians either before they vote or as payment for thuggery and hooliganism. Many projects meant for you and I have been converted to private local and foreign businesses owned by politicians who singly pocket the proceeds of these enterprises to our detriment.

2019 is here again. These thieves will come again with their usual aim to steal, kill and destroy our destinies. The onus now lies on you and I to disallow them from achieving this aim. We are up to the task. We can make it happen. We can be united to allow what we want and discard what we don't. We must change our approach this time around and make these politicians understand that we know what we want and that we are not the fools they think we are.

Let the youth be a political tool that will lift the masses and develop our society; and not a tool that will be used to amass wealth by some greedy few. Though we still have the challenge few elders and leaders, who have always sold us out to politicians for five-a-penny; but for the fact that we know these leaders and elders, we will no longer allow them dictate to us any longer. We will make our decisions and change our leaders to people of impeccable integrity and not notorious criminals who have no sense of self-respect and self-worth to selflessly lead us aright.

It is a new dawn. It is our time to shine. It is time to execute the real change. 

Remember,  the change begins with you and I.

Prince Tai Adejorin