Thinking your vote doesn't count is the highest form of irresponsibility as a citizen.

The former British Prime Minister David Cameron once described Nigeria as a fantastically corrupt country, at a time when the country was making frantic effort to woo foreign investors and sell to them a positive image of the country as a land of opportunities, it wasn’t a welcomed comment. We rose to condemn such derogatory remark back then. However the recent chain of events in the country seems to affirm the statement made by Mr Cameron.

It has become worrisome the increasing number of corruption cases which seems to have kept the anti-corruption agencies on their feet. Of particular interest is the case of the Chief Justice of Nigeria Walter Onnoghen, who has allegedly have falsified his assets. Being the number one custodian of the law in the country, it seemed laughable and indeed an insult to the collective intellect of the people of Nigeria to have such a man claim to have forgotten to declare some of his assets that ran into a billion naira. Worse still is having a group of senior advocates of Nigeria rising to condemn the suspension of the Chief Justice on the basis that the suspension was not carried out in the proper manner. Even some respected Christian elders tied the suspension of the Chief Justice to religious and ethnic reasons, assuming the quick action by the Presidency is having ulterior motives. And that seems not to be far from the truth considering other corrupt individuals in the camp of the Presidency that has been left in peace and have seem untouchable, but still we must not lose sight of the main issue here.

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While we may not have much say concerning those already in places of authority, we definitely have a lot of say concerning those seeking an elective position come few days’ time, as this election would mark a change in the history of the country. There is therefore the need to go beyond being a social media critic who dissects and analyzes those we think are corrupt and not fit to role, and actually take part in the election process, it is time to walk the talk. By the figure released by INEC of the total number of registered voters, it's said that more than 50% of the registered voters are youth. This goes to say the decision to elect leaders that has what it takes to move the country forward and place her in her rightful place among other nations lies in the hands of the youth. We must as a people learn to deal with issues without playing the religious and ethnic card-tool with which selfish politicians use to cause division amongst us in time past. We must learn to harness the power in our diversity and use it to our advantage. If we hope to build a country with true federalism and a place where the role of law reigns, then we most rise to condemn in totality the practice of nepotism, favoritism and political god-fatherism, to embrace equity and justice. After all it is said that peace is not the absence of war, but the presence of justice.

Written by Lawal Onimisi