By: Ahmed Rufa’i in Dutse
Former Kaduna State Governor, Senator Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi, and former Jigawa State Governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido, have challenged Nigerian youths to move beyond personality-driven politics and build stronger relationships across ethnic, religious and regional divides.
The former governors spoke at a public lecture organised in Dutse, the Jigawa State capital, to mark Lamido’s 78th birthday.
The lecture, titled “Guiding Youths on Political Ideology for Building a New Nigeria,” focused on youth leadership, political participation, character development and the need for greater national unity.
Makarfi, who chaired the event, urged youths to regularly interact with their counterparts from other parts of the country to deepen mutual understanding and strengthen Nigeria’s democracy.
He said young Nigerians would find it difficult to fully understand the country’s challenges if they remained confined to their respective regions and interacted mainly with people of similar ethnic, religious or cultural backgrounds.
According to him, cross-regional interaction would expose youths to different perspectives and enable them to resolve disagreements through dialogue rather than confrontation.
“Nigeria is large, and youths need to interact across the country. They need to understand themselves and the perspectives their peers have on particular issues.
“That is how we can resolve issues. Otherwise, misunderstanding will be the order of the day, and that will not move Nigeria forward,” Makarfi said.
He also urged young Nigerians to uphold their political principles while respecting people with different political affiliations, ethnic backgrounds, regions and religious beliefs.
Makarfi said the future of the country depended largely on the ability of its younger generation to understand one another and work together despite their differences.
In his parts, the former Jigawa State governor Alhaji Sule Lamido said he deliberately chose to mark his 78th birthday by engaging youths rather than organising a conventional celebration involving political elites.
He said the decision was driven by his concern over the future of Nigeria and the challenges confronting the younger generation.
According to him, Nigerian youths have increasingly been exposed to politics characterised by thuggery, hatred, abuse and disrespect, instead of constructive political engagement based on ideas and principles.
“I agreed to celebrate my birthday with youths because they have been abandoned. I feel Jigawa should be a building block for Nigeria’s future by restoring good character, integrity, and respect for one another among our youths,” Lamido said.
He said young Nigerians needed proper guidance, sound education, employment opportunities and moral upbringing to prepare them for leadership responsibilities.
“As leaders, what have we prepared for our teeming youths who are the future of this nation? They need our guidance, good character, sound education, employment, respect for elders, and respect for one another. If youths are abandoned, there is no hope for the future,” he said.
Lamido expressed concern that some youths were being mobilised around individual politicians rather than political ideas and principles.
He warned that such politics could turn young people belonging to different political parties into enemies despite having similar aspirations and challenges.
“Whether you are in PDP, APC, ADC or any other political party, you share so much in common as a youth. Therefore, while you are in your own political party, you should not be enemies,” he said.
The former governor said political parties and individual politicians could change, but Nigeria would remain a common inheritance and responsibility of the younger generation.
He recalled that previous generations benefited from mentorship by political leaders, elders, religious institutions and other societal structures, which helped shape their character and leadership values.
Lamido therefore challenged present-day leaders and other stakeholders to provide similar guidance and opportunities for young Nigerians.
He said youths from the North, South, East and West should recognise that they belong to the same generation and have a shared stake in the future of Nigeria.
He urged political leaders to invest in the intellectual, moral and leadership development of youths instead of encouraging political hostility and division.
Lamido said Nigeria could achieve sustainable development when its young people were adequately prepared to assume leadership responsibilities based on competence, integrity, tolerance and national responsibility.
The lecture was delivered by Dr. Auwalu Anwar, while Prof. Kamilu Sani Fage, Dr. Akilu Sani Indabawa and the ADC governorship candidate in Kano State, Sheikh Ibrahim Khalil, participated as discussants.
