Ahead of the 2019 general elections, President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday urged Nigerian youths not to submit themselves to be used by selfish politicians to destabilise the country.
He said this in Ilorin, Kwara state, at the 34th convocation of the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN).
Buhari, who was represented by the Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof Abubakar Rasheed, said “I urge Nigerian youths to resist being used as agents of destabilisation of our country by politicians who do not mean well for our democracy and our dear nation in the 2019 general elections.
“I advise parents and guardians to implore their children to behave responsibly before, during and after the elections.”
The Director of Quality Assurance at NUC, Noel Salihu, read the president’s speech on behalf of Prof. Rasheed.
“My dear graduands your parents and our nation have invested so much in your future and it is my advice not to allow yourselves, who have been carefully trained, continuously nurtured to be turned into agents of destruction by selfish few.
“You are the future of this country and so you must not allow the future to be destroyed by anyone no matter how highly placed or materially endowed.
“It is also imperative to make this appeal for authorities of tertiary institutions in the country to wage a relentless war against all forms of indiscipline towards protecting the sanity of this segment of our population. You must fight examination malpractices, hooliganism, cultism and sexual harassment.” he said.
Earlier, former Nigerian foreign minister Prof. Ibrahim Gambari while speaking on the topic: “education for peace, democracy and development” urged the Federal Government to allow the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a free and fair election in 2019 and beyond.
“Nigeria has another opportunity to reposition and deepen its democracy in other to deliver dividends such as quality social services, including especially education and health, prosperity and security of life and property.
“The 2019 elections must be a game-changer. Nigerians want to see non-selective intensification of the anti-corruption battle on all fronts with thorough investigations and convictions which serves as credible deterrence.
“They want to celebrate the end of Boko Haram and end of insurgency; they want to see a fiscal regime that firms up the Naira against the other currencies through effective control of the oil and a well diversified economic culture; they want to see and live in a society where kidnapping is effectively checked etc,” Prof Gambari said.
