Okwe Obi, Abuja
Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, has said the country’s democratic process could only advance when the youths were given their rightful place.
Mustapha claimed that the interest of Nigerian youth declined drastically in terms of democratic process because of military interventions in the past.
The SGF, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Special Duties, Yusufu Daudu, spoke in Abuja during this year Democracy Youth Round Table organised by Aso Multimedia yesterday.
He described the youths as the strength of the nation which should not be toyed with.
“For any nation to progress in its democratic process, the youths must be given their rightful place. From the forgoing, it is clear that Nigerian youths have been part of the foundation of our country leadership and democratic process until the interventions of the military in the nation’s democracy land scape from 1966. It was then that the youth’s participation declined.
“I am pleased to note that with the Not Too YoungTo Run Bill now in place, it has been observed that the concluded February 2019 elections witnessed tremendous increase in the number of youths that participated at all levels compared to previous elections.
“This in itself is a good development indicating that better days and opportunities are bound for the youths of this country in our national democratic process,” he said.