Obi gears up for live debate with others on Channels Television
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Live television debates have been lined up for presidential candidates by a joint team of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Yiaga Africa, and Channels Television for public awareness of the election and assessment of the candidates.
The participants will include Peter Obi (Labour Party, LP); Bola Tinubu (All Progressives Congress, APC); Atiku Abubakar (Peoples Democratic Party, PDP); Rabiu Kwankwaso (New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP); Omoyele Sowore (African Action Congress, AAC).
The series also includes citizen dialogues with youths, election experts, development experts, and other influential voices.
Yiaga Africa Executive Director Samson Itodo said the purpose is to increase electoral awareness and kindle engagement on social, economic, and development-related topics for Nigeria to consider in the 2023 vote and beyond.
There would be debates and townhalls with the presidential candidates and political party leaders to highlight and discuss their strategies and manifestos, he added.
Data released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) shows 71 per cent of the 11 million new voters registered are youths aged 18-35.
That makes the youth a critical target demographic to engage so as to reduce election apathy, improve voter turnout, and rebuild trust in the process, Itodo said.
The focus would be youth and women empowerment as they relate to other developmental issues such as inclusive economic growth, peace and security, and climate change.
“Providing citizens with the information required to make informed choices and giving them a platform to market their ideas, will alternatively inspire them to turn out and vote”, Itodo explained, per The PUNCH.
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Two-way dialogue
The overall aim is to create opportunities for a two-way dialogue between citizens and politicians in order to increase participation in the electoral process, rather than the traditional one-way communication of information delivery.
“This series is about highlighting the key issues confronting Nigerians with the upcoming General Elections. The electorate needs to be fully informed on the process and be able to voice their concerns,” explained UNDP Nigeria Resident Representative Mohamed Yahya, per reporting by Channels Television.
“By being active participants in the electoral process, they can hold their intended representatives accountable to deliver on their promises.”
Channels Media Group Chairman/CEO John Momoh said: “We are pleased as always to be the medium through which citizens of the country would engage with political office seekers and by so doing play a role in deepening the electoral process in Nigeria.”