Reps working to reduce financial barriers to youth participation in politics – Kalu
Benjamin Kalu, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives has stated that the House is actively reviewing legislative frameworks to reduce the financial barriers to youth participation in politics, and enhance their representation in party structures, and create institutional pathways for youth-led civic innovation.
Kalu, while noting the critical role of youths in Nigeria’s democracy, charged them to take active leadership roles. He also reaffirmed the parliament’s commitment to supporting youth leadership.
Kalu said this while delivering the keynote address at the opening of the 2025 CiTech Summit organised by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies to mark the 10th anniversary of World Youth Skills Day. Kalu, who was represented by Muktar Shagaya, noted that the event is timely as Nigeria’s future depends on harnessing its vast digital potential to build an inclusive, transparent, and technology-driven democratic system.
The Deputy Speaker who chairs the committee on constitution review assured that the committee has been working assiduously to advance electoral reforms and will enact legal frameworks to provide the oversight, and champion the reforms necessary to deliver a credible, digitally-enabled, and inclusive 2027 election.
He lamented that despite Nigeria’s projected 103 million internet users and over 205 million active mobile connections, representing 90.7 per cent of the population, the country still struggles with significant digital inequality.
Kalu stressed the need to leverage digital innovation can deepen citizen participation and build a truly inclusive democracy ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“As Chairman of the House Committee on Constitutional Review, I have the distinct privilege and profound responsibility of leading one of the most consequential reform exercises in Nigeria’s democratic journey. Our mandate is clear: to review, refine, and strengthen the constitutional and legal frameworks that govern our democracy, with particular attention to electoral integrity, federalism, gender inclusion, and institutional accountability”, he was quoted saying in a statement signed by Udora Orizu, SA Press Affairs to the Deputy Speaker.
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“The Committee has been working assiduously to advance electoral reforms. We are committed to ensuring that the Electoral Act 2025/2027, currently before the National Assembly, incorporates exactly this. These legislative reforms are urgent, actionable, and non-negotiable. The House Committee on Constitutional Review is committed to completing this work and ensuring that these provisions are enacted into law well before the 2027 electoral cycle begins. Democracy cannot thrive on goodwill alone; it requires enforceable legal frameworks that compel compliance and punish malfeasance.
“We must transform civic tech from symbolic tracking to influential governance reform. We must empower youth not as beneficiaries, but as architects of the democracy they will inherit. As Chairman of the House Committee on Constitutional Review, I pledge to you that the National Assembly will do its part. We will enact the legal frameworks, provide the oversight, and champion the reforms necessary to deliver a credible, digitally-enabled, and inclusive 2027 election”, Kalu assured.
