Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has expressed concern over the increasing discontent among Nigerian youths regarding the state of governance in the country. He revealed that he recently met with a group of young people from across the 19 Northern states who expressed their frustrations over fraudulent elections and growing hardships.
In a statement posted on his X handle, Atiku said that young Nigerians are worried that their votes do not count anymore and poor governance/policies will continue to negatively impact their standard of living.
According to him, he was very sad to see the faces of the depressed Nigerian youths who believe weak leadership and compromised elections have come to stay in Nigeria.
“Every time they come to have a conversation with me about bad governance, fraudulent elections, and resultant hardship being faced by citizens, I deeply feel sad about the situation.
Yesterday evening, I received yet another group of youths from across the 19 Northern states, led by Alh. Adamu Bappa Gombe.
They were worried about how their votes don’t count and how bad governance and policies impact negatively on their standard of living and private businesses,” he wrote.
Atiku further encouraged Nigerian youths not to lose hope, stressing that change can only be achieved through the ballot box.
He concluded by reiterating his unwavering commitment to combating anti-democratic forces for as long as he lives.
“I have continued to encourage them not to give up. I told them the change they desire can only come through the ballot. I reminded them that they have a responsibility to mobilise their fellow young people to keep participating in the process of leadership recruitment through elections.
I reminded them that the change they desire cannot be attained by voter apathy and that 25% to 30% voter turnout in every election cycle is not encouraging.
I challenged them to make a huge difference by influencing massive participation in 2027.
On our part, we shall not relent until Nigeria is recovered from anti-democratic forces,” he added.
