16th November, 2018
The Modern Democratic Party (MDP) on Friday said it remained a veritable platform for young people to realise their leadership ambitions in the country.
The National Chairman of the party, Mr Bukunyi Olateru-Olagbagi, said this in a statement in Lagos.
He said the youths were indispensable in the development of any country and so should have unfettered access to political leadership positions.
Olateru-Olagbegi, however, said this had not been the case in Nigeria as the youth had been crowded out of positions of power by political parties, older politicians, politicians with insensitive financial requirements and bureaucracy.
The chairman, a pioneer member of the Not-Too-Young movement, said young people also did not identify with the present political parties, as they did not champion nation-building policies.
“It is simple. Young Nigerians don’t identify with the parties that currently exist.
“The parties don’t care about the issues that matter to young people, don’t speak their language, don’t hear or even see them as anything.
“They only make them part of the landscape they drive by on their way to their very important meetings.
“Young men and women who are driven and have purpose to do things for this country are being crowded out of power.
“The only answer to these questions is the Modern Democratic Party, a party created by young Nigerians to champion the civic ambitions of young Nigerians”, he said.
Olateru-Olagbegi said apart from being a youth-focused party offering young people a platform to seek leadership positions, MDP also had access to education as one of its core programmes.
The party chief described the high illiteracy rate in the country as unacceptable, saying something must be done to provide access for 13 million out-of-school children, mostly girls.
The party had its convention on Saturday where popular Hip-Hop artiste, Bankole Wellington (Banky W) was unveiled as the candidate for Eti-Osa Federal Constituency, Lagos.
Unveiling his campaign slogan Hope’19, Wellington he would be under an illusion if he believed the contest for the Eti-Osa seat would be an easy one considering those in the race.
He, however, said he had the backing and trust of the people in the area to win the seat and give them a better representation in 2019.