Anambra 2017 and The Criminalisation Of The Youth

• By Chukwuemerie Uduchukwu

This will be another year that will set the economic heartland of South-Eastern Nigeria agog. It is a year mapped out for Anambra State governorship election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). According to a time table released by INEC, the election will hold on 18th day of November and since the election date was announced, numerous anonymous individuals and groups disguising themselves as Youth associations have been disturbing the peace of the social media with either news about their internal elections or battles of supremacy. These anonymous associations who normally become active during election season are now as usual, claiming to be true representatives of numerous youths in the state. As usual, they have started promising paradise on earth to some ignorant public while their major aim is to drive deep into the pockets of political heavy weights in the state.

Anambra youths should never be carried away by these associations because the only thing they can benefit from them is turning them into political toy of some desperate politicians which will end up breeding political thugs and security threats in the state.

From time immemorial, these anonymous associations have done nothing to ensure that government policies that will favour the youths were made. They have also done nothing to encourage the youths to contest elections, they have also done nothing to attract scholarships for poor youths in various tertiary institutions. Also, these fraudulent association have done nothing in enlightening the youths on health issues like HIV/AIDS, Sickle Cell, Kidney disorder and drug abuse. Their expertise are only in battling for supremacy, running various factions, parading themselves around politicians and doing deceitful writeups during election seasons. In fact you will be shocked to know that majority of the youths in various parts of the state do not even know that those associations exist.

As usual, they are now claiming to be born-again and are ready to swear with the name of Amadioha that they are there for the interests of the youths. Please that is a LIE! Who funds those associations? Who are their representatives in various communities of the state? Kindly note that those associations are funded by money collected from politicians and they don’t even have any grassroot structure to gather votes. Rather, they are associations of few, by few and for few unemployed desperate aged and over aged persons that parade themselves as youths.

The youths should know that their only weapon of mass destruction is their permanent voters card and not those anonymous associations. We the youths can only make a true change in the polity through voting candidates that have practically shown love for interests and NOT through desperate unemployed persons disguising as members of youth associations.

* Chukwuemerie Uduchukwu writes from Awka, Anambra State.