Group demands 40 per cent youths’ appointment

The Transformative Leadership and Sustainable Development Initiative (TLSDI) a nongovernmental organisation has demanded that 40 per cent of all political appointments in incoming administrations in Nigeria be given to youths.

The TLSDI Executive Director Opeyemi Oriniowo at a conference in Lagos, said young people do not have major representation in decision-making processes across the governments.

He added that “5 year Strategic Action Plan for Nigeria’s Youth Post 2019 General Elections” was underway, noting it was a historic opportunity to deliver the much-needed paradigm shift aimed at changing the narrative of poor governance in Nigeria.

Oriniowo explained that the appointments was not limited to the Federal government alone but those state governments should also accede to the demands.

He said that their vision was to see the voices of more young people in governance in Nigeria.

“We expect our young people’s voice on the table of decision making at federal and state governments.

“We no longer want tokenism but full representation that will ultimately lead to the realisation of the not too young to run act, which was not realisable at the just concluded 2019 general elections.

“Although there are many youths who participated in the elections, most of them lost out to money bags.

“We are driven by our conviction that Nigeria can only grow to greater heights with more participation of youths in governance,” he said.

He said that the group targeted the empowerment of 10,000 Nigerian youths in its five-year strategic plan on all sectors of the nation’s economy.

“The 5-year strategic plan will focus on the voice, livelihood, enhancement, mental health and leadership development.

“We want to begin now to sensitise the youths ahead of 2023, because sustainably of visions is the key to keeping agitations alive.

“We were fully involved in the monitoring of the 2019 general elections and we discovered that the only way out is through appointments and empowerment of the youths.

“We want to intervene in Nigeria’s story and challenges through influencing public opinion in a constructive way,” he said.

Speaking, Media Personality, Bolanle Olukanni spoke on the group’s upcoming “SURGE”  conference,  which she said was designed to create a safe space for young leaders in the public, private and social sectors to synergise.

“The conference will aggregate the demands, desires and expectation of the youth and how it can be achieved.=

“The conference will also deliberate on how to hold government accountable by ensuring transparency and responsiveness,” she said.