2023: Group calls on Nigerians to avoid sentimental voting

The National President of the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF), Alhaji Yerima Shettima, has called on Nigerians not to vote on sentiments of religion, tribe, or section in the 2023 election.

Speaking in Kaduna State on Thursday, Shettima said, “The constitution of the country has provided Nigerians with another opportunity to elect leaders of their choice to pilot the affairs of the nation for the next four years.

“Nigerians should learn from the mistakes of the past and cast their votes to candidates that have the experience, exposure and are issue-based in tackling the challenges of the country.”

He advised that votes should be cast without sentiment but supported based on merit.

“Nigerians should be conscious and know that this is the country we all belong to, and we have no other country. We should be patriotic and wise enough not to get carried away by sentiments.

“We must give our votes to those who will sincerely pilot the country’s affairs successfully to benefit all.

“We have hope for better change, hopefully with the situation on ground, everybody has seen it all; Nigerians have become more politically conscious.

I believe strongly that Nigerians will look for better options and choose among our candidates.

“If we cannot get it right now, then it will be too dangerous for us in the country in the years ahead,” he said.

He appealed to candidates to be issue-based in their campaigns so that Nigerians would have a better choice of whom to vote for, saying that Nigerians should be mindful of whom to vote for to ensure we restore hope in the country.

According to him, the future of democracy in the country is bright, believing that Nigerians have learned their lessons. With the present situation in Nigeria, Nigerians have become very conscious of what is good for them.

They will not allow themselves to be toyed around by selfish politicians who are after themselves.

He believed that, at the moment, Nigerians are very much divided, and anything that would bring further disunity should be discouraged.

Expressing delight that the government and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, are leaving no stone unturned to ensure campaigns are issue-based and devoid of hate speech for the unity and development of the country.

Shettima then called on Nigerians to rise to the occasion by ensuring that next year’s elections are free, fair, and credible, stressing that efforts should be made to do away with sectional, religious and tribal politics that would further divide the country.

DailyPost/S.O