by Ismaeel Ahmed

We will not stand idly by and watch some men or group of men whose ambition or disagreements, whose inability to resolve their differences in private drag our party’s name to public odium, nor would we look on as some charlatans in the name of any group of whatever region, hue or creed attempt to malign the names of great men and women who have made tremendous sacrifice to get us to where we are today.

 Dear friends and comrades,

As we mark the one month of President Buhari’s administration, on behalf of the mobilizers, professionals and steadfast supporters that made this victory possible, especially our organizations such as APYF, ACT NOW, BSO, Change Agents Network, For the Future, Social Media Warriors and New Media Agents, I would like to thank everyone for their continued support, patience, understanding and encouragement for this administration.

Over the last few weeks, we have seen our party balance itself out, as it assumes its new role in government. No doubt, as we are in a democratic system where competition ultimately serves as a determining factor, there will always be hitches borne out of individuals’ zeal to serve along the way. The All Progressives Congress is no exception to this rule.

As young Nigerians, and critical stakeholders in the ‘Change Movement’ -investors who put in our time, resources, and sweat into forming this government, we must not despair or get carried away with such euphoria and lose focus. Instead, we must remain committed to achieving the positive change from the status quo that we secured at the March 28th polls.

We would be doing ourselves a great injustice if we stand aloof at a time when nation building is demanded of us from those that we convinced to join us in changing our government from 16 years of misrule, into this current APC-led dispensation.

As it stands, after the first phase of the National Assembly leadership election process, there has been a lot of noise and media swath on talks of “crises” “disunity” “crack” “collapse” within the ranks of our party. However, as young people with more stake in this project than those who currently hold positions of authority, we must stand solidly behind moving Nigeria forward and refuse to be dismayed or overwhelmed by the negativities of naysayers.

We must also ensure that at this time, when the cynics are again expecting the worst from our party and it’s leaders, we must give our leaders the fullest extent of our support in order to ensure that they get things done – for all our sakes.

However, when our leaders fail in any way to adhere to the basic tenets of civility and decency, the fundamental norm upon which the party was created in the first place, then we must, as a matter of great importance, rise up to safeguard our party, our country and our future.

We will not stand idly by and watch some men or group of men whose ambition or disagreements, whose inability to resolve their differences in private drag our party’s name to public odium, nor would we look on as some charlatans in the name of any group of whatever region, hue or creed attempt to malign the names of great men and women who have made tremendous sacrifice to get us to where we are today.

Like the progressives we are, our party will resolve any issue , that have arisen or will arise as a result of whatever situation no matter how minute or gargantuan and we will ensure that happens using all means necessary.

This is why over the next few weeks, we will pay visits to some of these leaders, to reiterate our conviction of a better Nigeria, and to remind them of the social contract we had with Nigerians as we earnestly sought their votes. And as young people, we must participate in the nation-building process – as this is a task that requires all hands on deck.

Finally, I must remind you all, that if we do not take part in our own little way, we cannot take charge of fixing Nigeria for ourselves, and for the generations YET unborn.

We, the younger generation played the biggest role in bringing this government about. We will play a bigger role to make sure it succeeds. This is our task now.
Let us remain steadfast. Let us remain committed. Let us remain united. And, we shall ultimately overcome.

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 Barr. Ismaeel Ahmed holds a Law Degree (LL.B) from University of Abuja, a Master of Arts Degree in International Relations and Diplomacy from Webster University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America.

Ahmed also holds a Masters of Law (LLM) from the University of Chicago, USA. He is a lawyer and a politician. He is currently the chairman of the All Progressives Youth Forum (APYF), a Youth body under the newly registered APC.

 Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.