Voter Apathy: NYCN Kickstarts 3-Day Anambra Youth Sensitization/ Electoral Awareness Program

Voter Apathy

Awka

The Anambra State Chapter of the National Youth Council of Nigeria, NYCN on Thursday, commenced a three-day Youth Sensitization/ Electoral Awareness programme for the 2023 General Election across the three Senatorial Zones in the state.

The exercise has as its theme, ‘We have 2.5 million votes, use it to determine the future you want.’

The program commenced with a road show today in many parts of Awka including Eke-Awka market, UNIZIK temp-site, Amawbia flyover, Umuokpu Building materials among others.

The show saw many youths bearing placards with many inscriptions, from the NYCN and other allied and affiliate unions and organisations, share fliers and enlighten the people on the need to vote and shun violence during the elections.

Speaking during the exercise, the Anambra NYCN Chairman, Surveyor Obi Emeka Chukwudi said as youth leaders in the state, they deemed it fit to sensitize the people to come out and participate in the upcoming elections.

He regretted that in the time past, Anambra is with over 2 million registered voters and 2 million collected voters’ cards but when it comes to the elections, it has less than 500,000 persons participating in elections.

“So, there is need this time to do this sensitization to ensure that we vote massively.

“It is a political insult for us in the Southeast and Anambra having the habit of not voting. It makes it look like we are not ready to play our role in the nation’s polity, especially now that we are complaining of exclusion.

“Our votes are our passport to a better Nigeria,” he said.

Obi noted that the implication of the youths not voting is that bad leaders will end up assuming the position of leadership.

“We have to learn how to stop complaining and protesting when we make the wrong choices during the elections.

“Now is the time to ensure that such bad persons do not find their way into leadership positions through our votes,” he concluded.

On his part, Mr Chisom Onugha, the State Youth leader of farmers in Anambra State, described the awareness programme as a reawakening project in the sense that the people cannot continue to complain.

“The gap is as a result of voter apathy. We can no longer continue to complain as youths when we have the capacity to determine who wins the next election.

“We want to tell our people that it is not enough for you to go and get your PVCs but it is equally important that you come out to use your PVCs to vote on the election days.

“INEC has done a good job and we also want to ask them not to compromise.

“We also ask the security agencies to use their good offices to ensure that the elections are free and fair.

“We have good choices in the candidates that have come out this time around but without voting them in, nothing will change,” he said.

Also speaking, Comrade IKC Onuorah, the State NYCN Deputy Chairman called on the youths not to allow themselves to be used as thugs and other nefarious activities during the elections.

In his words; “Our youths need to understand that these people engaging them as thugs do not have their interests in mind because if they love them, they won’t use them for such evil.

“They can’t use their children for the jobs. After using you for the thuggery work, they will surely abandon you after the elections. That’s why you must not allow yourselves to be used by them.”

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