Atedo Peterside Guests Classic FM The Discourse

“It is difficult to improve a Club or Party that you do not belong to” – Atedo Peterside CON

Nigerians have the chance to cause again a change in the way the country should be. Activating this change would require more than getting to vote in an election. The first real deal is getting suitable candidates, which ONLY members of Political Parties can elect. Whether it’s politics, economy, security or education, Nigerians know when they’re not getting the best. How can Nigerians be a part of rebuilding a country destroyed by a few while the majority sit on the fence?

Founder of the ‘GoNigeria’ initiative, Peterside said;

”An increasingly large number of youths have since come back to me, to say that they have registered online with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and done their biometrics and so they expect to pick up their PVCs soon.

“Others have complained about obstacles and frustrations surrounding biometric capture (in particular) at some INEC Centers; this should be monitored and escalated as necessary.

“Some other youths however stress that they want to go beyond collection of PVCs and actually get involved in party politics, but outside of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

“They argue that choosing between the two large political parties is akin to a choice between “the devil and the deep blue sea” (my sincere apologies to the APC/PDP members who are GoNigeria Advocates and the many other good people in APC/PDP who are themselves victims of Godfatherism).

”Most Nigerians are deeply concerned about the state of our economy (high inflation and high unemployment) and also fear for their lives on account of the worsening security situation. Sadly, the poor economy aggravates the security situation and vice versa. It is also impossible to separate economics from politics. Perhaps many of us mistakenly concentrated on the economy for too long?

”The new electoral act has significantly improved the probability that INEC can conduct proper elections. We must commend President Buhari, the Senate President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and all others who contributed to bring this about. However, it is also true to point out that they have delivered very little else and so I disagree with those who expect them to midwife anything beyond their own departure come May 2023. The rest of us must seize the bull by the horns and overcome both voter apathy and the reluctance of many good people to get involved in party politics. Nobody is going to come from Mars or Jupiter to improve Nigerian political parties. If they remain defective, then they may consistently spew out bad choices.”

 

This Sunday on The Discourse, Classic FM will present a Special Edition on The State of The Nation.

Topic: Nigeria 2023: State of The Nation

Guest: Atedo N A Peterside CON, GoNigeria Convener, President & Founder of Anap Foundation & Founder of Stanbic IBTC Bank PLC

Date: Sunday May 8, 2:00 p.m