Schools should encourage students to vote

The Executive Director, Youngsters Foundation Development Initiative, Kingsley Bangwell, has said elections should be encouraged in basic and secondary schools to enable students select their leaders. Mr Bangwell who made the statement at the Young Aspirants Leadership Fellowship, Post-Election Retreat in Abuja, said election could be entrenched in classroom to help young people become politically […]

The Executive Director, Youngsters Foundation Development Initiative, Kingsley Bangwell, has said elections should be encouraged in basic and secondary schools to enable students select their leaders.

Mr Bangwell who made the statement at the Young Aspirants Leadership Fellowship, Post-Election Retreat in Abuja, said election could be entrenched in classroom to help young people become politically educated and engaged citizens.

He said “We need to institutionalise elections in schools to encourage the youths to participate in future elections. Students should be allowed to choose class monitors who would govern democratically; this would enable contestants to take part in campaigns to persuade voters and that brings about civic culture in decision making process.”

He said his organisation worked with INEC, especially on youth political participation and a report written at the end of the retreat in which over a hundred youths that participated in the 2019 election shared their experiences, will be submitted to the electoral commission with a view to improving future elections.

He said, “We continue to provide technical support for youths who won election and also engage with those that lost the election to sustain their relevance in their respective communities.”