Nigeria to ease age limit to seek political office

By Rafiu Ajakaye

LAGOS, Nigeria (AA) - Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday said he would approve a law that will lower age requirements to seek elective position in the country, opening political space for youths following years of agitation.

"In a few days to come, I will be joined by many promising young Nigerians to sign into law the “Not Too Young to Run” bill,” Buhari announced in an early morning broadcast to commemorate the 19th anniversary of Nigeria’s return to democracy.

Under the legislation popularly called the #NotTooYoung bill, anyone aged 30 years and above can contest for governor or senator, and a 25-year-old can seek election into the federal or state parliament. A 35-year-old will be able to contest for president, down from the current 40 ceiling.

The bill scaled through the two arms of the parliament and at least 26 state assemblies last year after lawmakers altered certain sections of the country's constitution which the youth say shut them out of the political space, despite their largest voting strength.

Currently, only 35-year-olds and above can contest for a federal parliamentary seat.

Buhari said his administration will continue to strengthen democracy, rule of law and probity, calling on his country people to eschew violence, hatred and intolerance ahead of next year's poll in which he is standing for reelection.

The opposition recently accused the president of muzzling them ahead of the polls. An opinion poll conducted by a prominent civic group Center for Democracy and Development put Buhari’s approval ratings on corruption fight, security and economy at 40 percent, down from 57 percent last year.

Regardless, the president gave himself a pass mark but he acknowledged challenges in some areas such as security issues, especially the deadly clashes between farmers and herders in Nigeria’s agrarian belt.

The president listed his achievements to include revamping the ailing economy he "inherited" in 2015, deepening power generation, strengthening social infrastructure, cutting back on food importation, beating back the violent Boko Haram insurgency and recovering billions of dollars from individuals who are facing corruption trials.

Buhari added: “Like I have always said, if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will destroy the country. Three years into this Administration, Nigerians and the international community have begun to applaud our policies and determination to fight corruption. We are more than ever before determined to win this war, however hard the road is. I therefore appeal to all well-meaning Nigerians to continue to support us in this fight.

“We have retained the services of one of the world’s leading assets tracing firms to investigate and trace assets globally. This is in addition to the exploitation of provisions of existing treaties, conventions as well as bilateral agreements with multilateral bodies and nations. Nigeria has also signed Mutual Legal Assistance Agreements to ensure that there is no hiding place for fugitives.”