 And Stakeholder's drum supports for Vice President Yemi Osibajo. And as the world celebrates another International Women's Day, we discuss breaking the bias women experience in their lives. Well, this is Plus Politics. I am Mary Anna Corbyn. In February of 2022, the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osibajo, has denied plans to declare his presidential ambition ahead of the 2023 general elections. However, this hasn't stopped several groups have been drumming supports for the past turn politician. Some of the groups have also endorsed him saying he has met the criteria needed to create a new Nigeria. We speak to one of such groups, Citizens Unites. It's a group that claims to be nonpartisan and believes that the Vice President is the best man for the job. Violet Anirubi is a member of Citizens Unites and she joins us tonight. Thank you so much for joining us, Violet. Thank you, Miriam. Good to be here. It's interesting to see that young people are throwing their weights. Normally I would see a much older person trying to drum support for a candidate. But tell us why Citizens Unites, why you're choosing the Vice President. I mean, this is a man that has not necessarily come out to say he wants to run for the office. So why him? Yeah. I will answer that question by saying how did it get here where you're asking me why him? Because why not him? He's the best candidate, actually. As Citizens Unites, our core values are meritocracy, zero tolerance for corruption, nonpartisan. So all this is inclusivity, detrabalized and nonbiased. I feel that the Vice President, Professor Yamio Shibajo, encapsulates all of these core values. That's why at Citizens Unites we're endorsing him and we are clamoring that he contests for the presidential election in 2023. Because we believe presently he's the best candidate and the best option Nigeria has to move us from where we are to where we are supposed to be as a nation and as a people. Interesting. Let's talk about the makeup of your group before we talk about the Vice President. There's a lot to unpack. This group is nonpartisan, but then you are advocating for a man who's a member already of a political party, who's a sitting Vice President. Yes. So you chose to endorse a person who's a member of a political party. Does that resonate with all the people who are in your group? Because you're nonpartisan, meaning that all your members belong to different political parties. So how does that work? So we are all nonpartisan, members of Citizens Unites, the escows, the core escows of Citizens Unites were nonpartisan. We came together, we looked at all the contestants, all the people that are coming up everywhere and we said, okay, who is the best person for Nigeria? Who can help us take us to the next level? I just finished my master's degree from Coventry University and a lot of my classmates don't want to come back to Nigeria. They rather do different things over there than come back home. When I came back because I believe that 2023 is either a do or die affair for Nigeria, we either get it right or we fail completely. And so I'm here now to ensure that we get it right in 2023 and that's what brought all of us together. We have same spirit, we have same goal and we want Nigeria to make it beyond 2023. That's why we are endorsing the Vice President. What are those characteristics that the Vice President has displayed or could have displayed that would have made you think that he's the man for this job? I mean, I'm sure you don't have to educate me as to his precedence, but what made you choose him over many other people who may or may not be interested in this job? Number one is Meritocracy. His lifestyle, he exemplifies it. In what ways? This is someone who became a lawyer in 1981 and then he spent 10 years before he became a professor. He was a lecturer 10 years before he became a professor and then he became a son. He worked under Bola Ajibola. So he was a legal advisor to Bola Ajibola. He was the one that discovered him. And then afterwards he was also discovered and became the attorney general of legal states. So this is someone who has climbed in different phases of his life. He has become like a master, like a master of everything. He was a lecturer. He was to become a professor. There are many professors in the country. There are many people who came from gas to grace. Not many people are professors. There are many professors in Nigeria. But normally people become professors in law after they are lecturers. So not many people do that. So does Nigeria need a law professor to lead us? Is that the problem that Nigeria has come? No, I'm talking about Meritocracy. I said he exemplifies it. So this is someone, if you check his lifestyle over the years, so this is what he has become. He was a lecturer for 10 years before he became a professor. And then he was a lawyer for years before he became a son. And now he's the vice president. And we are saying, okay, if this person has exemplified all of this, in Nigeria we want a situation where nobody becomes somebody without knowing anybody. Just because you are worth it and because you know your onions, and then you merit that position, you're giving it, not because you know somebody. So that is in Nigeria we envision. And also zero tolerance for corruption. That's also one of our core values. Let's look at the vice president. He's the vice president. He's the vice president who's leading us now. How well do you think the administration he's part of has done? Why should we take someone from that administration to come back in 2023? Okay. When you look at the vice president, I would like to go back. Let's go back in time to 2017 when he had 51 days as the acting president. You could see that the country made progress. And then there were a lot of things that happened. He fired the then director general of the state security service. So there were a lot of movements. Aircraft. So a lot of people, my friends, my colleagues, all of us are saying if someone can do such, go through such what's it called progress within 51 days. How well do you think he would do in four years? Well, but he's still part of this government. Why have we not been able to see all of that progress in the two turniers that they are running? Again, this, I asked you a question that you skipped. Yeah. How well has this administration done? Because of course, we're going to have to judge this administration to be able to say, let's pull out somebody from this administration to be president in 2023. So I want your honest opinion because my job here is to ask the question. Yeah. So tell me what you think, how well this administration has fed and why are you and anybody else who's watching should want to give the vice president a ticket? Okay, this administration has done very well when it comes to infrastructure, train road transport. It has done extremely well. When it comes to corruption, it has reduced it dramatically. So yes, it has. And so when you look at all the antecedents from this present administration, you only put one downward. Did I tell you where we are in the corruption index? I mean, I'm talking about the latest one. We're nowhere close to what you're talking about. So I'm trying to understand where you got your statistics from. Oh, presently my statistics. Measuring it. Presently, what we do is that most of the present, what's it called? I am ministers and those in authority. They don't steal. Corruption is not done blatantly as it used to in the present, in the previous administration. So everyone is afraid. Yes, presently, everyone is afraid of what will happen to them if they are being caught. If your hand is caught in the pie. So that is where we are. We have instilled the fear of corruption. So even if some people, of course, Nigerians, most Nigerians are technically corrupt. So even if some people are corrupt, but they don't want their hands to be caught in the pie, because if this administration catches your hands in the pie, of course, you go, you, you... How many people has this administration tried and really sent to jail in terms of corruption? We've seen a lot of people who have corruption cases still hanging on their heads. But the moment they move to the APC, those cases have gone cold. Is that how the corruption cases have been reduced to its minimum, almost non-existence in your word? Oh, no. The corruption... One thing most people need to understand is that Nigeria practices... Nigeria is a federal republic, and then we practice presidential system of government. And then in presidential system of government, there's the legislative arm, and then there's the judiciary arm, there's the executive arm. So the judiciary arm we have a lot... It's unfortunate to say, but we have... That is what we have most of the problem is the judiciary and the legislative arm of the government of Nigeria. That's what we have most of the problem. The judges are very corrupt. The legislators are very corrupt. So most people tend to think that if you read through the Nigerian constitution, the president can just wave a magic hand. How dependent do you think other arms of government, other than the executive arm in Nigeria, how independent do you think they are under this administration or any other administration? The legislative arm is very independent. And the judicial? Yes, they are independent. That's why you see some cases, and then when some judges have received, of course, some things behind closed doors, they close those cases. And then the federal government is also pursuing those cases, but the judge says it's adjoined on the next year. So you're telling me that the Buhari administration is saintly, but the National Assembly and the judiciary is corrupt? I am not saying it is saintly. I am saying that the problem with Nigeria, which most people need to understand, is the legislative arm of government and the judiciary arm of government. So those two, once we've been able to deal with those two pillars, we'll be able to move Nigeria to the next level. Most times it's not ever necessarily that the executive arm of government is actually the legislators. They put bills in place and then they disapprove it. They just come there, they sit there, every time they collect during the COVID... Members of the National Assembly, 80% of them are members of the president's party. Why do you think they would want to work against the president or the executive? Because it's individual. You've noticed most times that... You've noticed most times that what the legislators do, they fight for their personal pockets. Most importantly, a typical example was during the COVID lockdown. So you had... A lot of people were saying Nigerians needed money, Nigerians were suffering because of the lockdown. And then what the legislators were thinking of was getting themselves in new cars. So in this case, you have individuals. Individuals are different from the party. The party is APC, which Buhari comes from. But these individuals are legislators. They are in the party, but they are also legislators. So they fight for their own selfish interests and not for the interests of the people of Nigeria. That's the problem. Interesting. So the government of President Buhari, flanked by the vice president, is indeed fighting corruption, but the legislature and the judiciary... I'm making it difficult. Yes, exactly. They're making it difficult. This is really interesting. Let's talk about the fact that you guys want the president, the vice president, to be president. What base do you think the vice president has? Because to be an Nigerian president, you must be someone that resonates with every other part of the country. Don't forget we're also having the conversation about zoning. And many people are advocating for an evil president. Do you think that the vice president does stand a chance against all of these other people, especially the people in the southeast who are asking for fair representation? Well, the APC has brought out their zoning calendar. And actually the presidency is zoned to the southwest. So I'm from southeast, but unfortunately it's not our turn yet. So I'm clamoring... Also, where did you get this information from? That it's not your turn yet. But when has it been the turn of the southeast? This time around is the turn of the southwest based on APC zoning. Where is it written that it will be the turn of the southwest or southeast at some point? Southeast. It's not your turn for southeast. How do you know this? Where did you get this information from? It's not the turn for the southeast because it's online. The APC have zoned differently. Oh, so this is according to the APC. It's not the turn of the southeast. That's what I was trying to get. The APC, the zoning for the APC, the presidency goes to the southwest. I see. Yes. So the southeast, I'm from southeast, it's not the turn for the southeast yet. When is it going to be the turn of the southeast? Oh, that is determined by the party. I'm not partisan, so it's determined by the party. So you do not support the southeast agitation for fair participation in the presidential zoning? Well, do you know, is there a candidate? You tell me. Well, if there is a viable candidate for us, what we have seen, we're not going by sentiments. As citizens unite, we are not moved by sentiments. We are moved by qualities. What does this person represent? So even if you're from southeast. So you're telling me that in the whole of the southeast, there is nobody who possesses a quality for a president, presidential enough to lead this country. That's what you're saying. As citizens unite. The person we have seen as citizens unite is Professor Yemi Ushibajo. That is the person we are endorsing. We have looked all around and the person we are endorsing is Professor Yemi Ushibajo. That's the person we are endorsing. That's the person we think can move Nigeria to where we need to be. How do you hope to get other young people because I see that you guys are a group of young people. How do you intend to get a lot more young people to jump on this bandwagon? And judging from what happened in October of 2020, the fact that those people, the people that were hit at the tour gate have not necessarily gotten justice. How do you hope to one way or the other appeal to the young people who are still aggrieved as to how the federal government deals with that issue? Oh, we want to give them a voice. That's why we created an app. P-Y-O app. It's on iOS. With the man who was in the government that has failed to recognize that these people needed justice. The government that in the first instance these young people hit the streets to protest for bad governance. How do you hope to do that? No, it wasn't a protest for bad governance. Oh, yes. It was a protest for no. It started as... It was a protest. Let me educate you. It was a protest for police reforms. Hold on. It started as a protest against a rogue police unit. Yes. Against police brutality. And then, of course, it met a force into end bad governance because if we had good governance, we would not have a rogue police unit killing young people. So again, how do you intend to send this message home to these young people? How do you end bad governance for a president who was democratically elected? Are you trying... Are we trying to turn us into a military era? So a president was democratically... Who's they? A president was democratically elected. And if you don't want him... Ending bad governance doesn't mean that you want to overthrow government. No. Should I educate you of what bad governance means? No. Bad leadership. Placard said resign, do this. And what you want to do... But that's the democracy. People have a right to do that. Don't they have a right to do that? They do. But if you want to end bad governance in a democratically standing state, in a democratically elected president, all you have to do is use your thumbs. When is 2023? That's why we are clamoring. When is 2023? If you feel that the president, we are praying that he comes out and then he wants to be the president for 2023. If you feel he's not it for you, use your thumbs. So if you feel someone else is it, use your thumbs. But before then, how do you get people... Because you want him, you're clamoring for him to come out. We are clamoring for him. So if he does come out, how do you get young people to back him? That's what I said. We have an app. We created an app. It's called P.O.I.O. app. It's on Apple Store, it's on Google Play Store. So what we want to do is give young people a voice. How about those who are not tech savvy? It's not every young person. The guys who are looting who took over that protest and made it become something else. Those people don't have access to apps. Those are the people who actually go out on election day to vote. Compared to the people in the second class who do not necessarily come out to vote. So how do you appeal to those people? 70% of young people in Nigeria have smartphones. Yes. So we have done the statistics. We have done our research. We have done our findings. Smartphones. Yes, smartphones. Smartphones. Not telephones. Smartphones. So we've done our findings. We've done our statistics. If you... I don't know if you're on TikTok. 70%. Yes, 70%. I'd like to see that point. Yes. I'll share with you after now. All you have to do is click on the hashtag Nigerian TikTok and you see a lot of people on TikTok. A lot of Nigerians, young Nigerians using TikTok. And those Nigerians are 70% of the Nigerians. No, not only that. Not only TikTok. A lot. For instance, a lot of people use WhatsApp. This is 70%. TikTok is not only what you use on smartphones. You have WhatsApp. You have Opera Mini. There are a lot of applications that you have on your smartphones. Not only TikTok. So in this case, we've done our research. 70%. And these are the people we want to reach. So on the app, you can have a one-on-one with the vice president. We hope that you have a one-on-one. You can share your questions. Whatever burden you have for the nation or whatever questions you feel that he should answer. We'll post it there or you can send a video of yourself and then we'll ensure that those videos get to him and then he gets to answer those your questions. We also intend to hold virtual town halls on the mobile app as well as create a digital rally using the mobile app. So we want to take things differently. We want to do things differently because we are young. We are the youth. And the next generation is online. So that's what we are. Valet Anirabi is a member of Citizens Unites and I want to say thank you for being part of the conversation. Thank you. All right. Well, thank you all for staying with us. We'll take a short break. And when we return, we discuss women. Yes, it's International Women's Day and how can we break the bias against the women for this day with us?