Ezekwesili urges youth to take charge of Africa’s political future

Ahead of the general elections which begins January next year, the former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili, has charged Nigerian and the African youth to take ownership of the continent’s political future and use their collective power to build a prosperous Africa.

Ezekwesili made the call in Abuja, on Thursday at the 2026 #FixPolitics Africa Conference, themed:, “Reimagining Elections in Africa: Restoring Citizens as the True Owners of Power.”

The conference focused on the future of elections in Africa and the role of citizens in shaping political power and demanding accountable governance.

Ezekwesili said the influence of money in Nigerian politics could be overcome if citizens recognised their collective strength and became more actively engaged in the democratic process.

She challenged Nigerians to vote in their own interests and hold elected officials accountable for delivering good governance.

According to her, there comes a point when citizens become frustrated with poor governance and decide that money can no longer determine who governs them.

“Somebody can say, oh, you’re not being realistic. I mean, how do you fight money of the kind that we have seen in our politics? But it turns out that it comes to a time when money no longer works.

“We’ve seen it in other countries. There have been countries where citizens woke up one day and said, okay, you all can have all the money, but we’re tired of being poorly governed,” she said.

Ezekwesili said the conference was designed to encourage citizens to “unlock the power” they possess and deploy it through the electoral process.

She stressed that elections should not be treated as a one-day activity, noting that good governance required sustained citizen engagement before, during and after elections.

“The day of election is a moment. Being governed and governed well requires a movement because it requires permanent engagement. It is not a periodic thing. It is not an episodic thing,” the former minister said.

She urged Nigerians to remain vigilant after elections and continuously demand accountability from elected officials.

Ezekwesili said citizens who desired the freedom to prosper and live in an environment conducive to productivity must remain actively engaged in governance.

Citing former United States President Thomas Jefferson’s observation that “eternal vigilance is the price of freedom,” she urged Nigerians to join the growing demand for better governance.

“If you don’t demand for it, nobody supplies it. You won’t get out of elections,” she said.

The former minister also addressed concerns over alleged attempts by powerful individuals to manipulate the electoral process, urging citizens not to be intimidated by those in positions of influence.

She maintained that sovereignty ultimately belonged to the people, expressing confidence that citizens’ political consciousness would continue to grow.

“I’ve been talking to my fellow citizens. I’m encouraging my citizens to remember that Nigeria belongs to all of us. And sovereignty belongs to the people,” Ezekwesili said.

She added that political circumstances could change, warning citizens against assuming that existing power structures would remain permanently unchanged.

Also speaking, the Chairman of Bigs Politics Hub, Frank Nweke said the organisation had a responsibility to organise and mobilise citizens around issues affecting the country.

Nweke said the objective was to raise public consciousness, encourage participation in elections and promote sustained civic engagement beyond the polls.

“Everyone’s affected, right? And so we also feel a sense of responsibility to really organise, mobilise, have some of these conversations, again towards achieving one’s wishes, to arouse the consciousness of our people,” he said.

He urged Nigerians to recognise that everyone had a role to play in strengthening the country’s democratic process.

Similarly, executive director of Fix Politics Africa, Anthony Ubani said the Africa Conference had evolved over the past four years from an annual platform for political discussions into an initiative seeking to build a broader civic movement.

Ubani said the organisers had concluded that holding an annual conference without mechanisms to translate its resolutions into concrete action was no longer sufficient.

He said the fourth edition therefore focused on transitioning from a conference-based platform to a movement capable of taking its recommendations to communities, states, countries and institutions.

“This year, we have thought deeply and considered that it’s important to just move from having a moment of the Africa Conference every year to have a transition into a movement,” Ubani said.

He explained that the conference featured a roundtable of thinkers and experts from across Africa who developed ideas, solutions and recommendations for advancing the initiative.

He said the discussions produced what he described as “very germane ideas”, prompting the organisers to establish a small think tank to follow up on the recommendations.

He said the goal was to ensure that the conference did not end with discussions but resulted in measurable actions and progress that could be presented at the 2027 Africa Conference.