Yusuf Abdullahi Adekanbi
In every generation, politics eventually reaches a moment when the old order begins to yield to a new political imagination. That transition rarely arrives with dramatic declarations; it emerges gradually through demographic shifts, economic pressures, and the rise of individuals whose stories begin to mirror the aspirations of a younger society.
Nigeria, today, stands at one of the most significant demographic crossroads in the world. The country’s population has surpassed 200 million people, and most of that population is young.
According to projections from the United Nations, UN, and national demographic reports, more than 60 per cent of Nigerians are under the age of 30, while roughly 70 per cent of the population is under 35 years old.
This demographic structure means that Nigeria is not simply a young nation—it is a youth-driven society whose political future will inevitably be shaped by its younger generations.
Yet, for decades, Nigeria’s leadership structure did not reflect this reality. While young people formed the largest voting bloc and the most active campaign mobilisers, they remained significantly underrepresented in positions of political authority. Research from the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, estimates that over 52 million Nigerians fall within the youth category of 18–35 years, a population larger than the total population of many African countries.
Despite this demographic dominance, young Nigerians occupy only a small fraction of elected offices across the country.
The imbalance became so evident that it triggered one of the most important political reforms in Nigeria’s recent democratic history. In 2018, the National Assembly passed the Not Too Young To Run Act, a constitutional reform designed to remove age barriers that had historically prevented younger citizens from contesting political offices.
The reform reduced the minimum age for several elective positions. Eligibility for the House of Representatives and State Houses of Assembly dropped from 30 years to 25, while the age requirement for governorship and the Senate fell from 35 to 30, and the presidency from 40 to 35. The legislation fundamentally altered the psychological landscape of Nigerian politics by sending a powerful signal that leadership was no longer legally restricted to older generations. The impact was immediate.
In the elections that followed the reform, reports indicate that more than 1,500 candidates under the age of 35 contested seats in the House of Representatives, representing roughly a quarter of the entire candidate field. Although only a limited number ultimately secured seats, the reform succeeded in dismantling a long-standing barrier to youth political ambition.
But laws alone do not create movements.
Structural reforms may open doors, but it takes visible leadership to convince people that those doors can be walked through. Across Northern Nigeria, a new generation of emerging political figures has begun to embody that possibility. Among them is the 36-year-old Abdulrahman Bashir Haske, whose grassroots political activities have caught attention in recent times.
Originating from Adamawa State, a region with a long tradition of producing influential political leaders, Haske represents a profile that resonates strongly with the younger generation now seeking space within Nigeria’s political landscape.
His path into public life did not begin through the traditional machinery of party politics but through enterprise and economic engagement.
Educated at the American University of Nigeria, he built business interests in sectors closely tied to the economic realities of Northern Nigeria, including agriculture, logistics, and energy. These sectors are particularly significant in a region where agriculture alone employs millions of young people and remains one of the largest contributors to regional livelihoods.
Through agricultural support initiatives and youth empowerment programmes, his outreach has extended across Adamawa’s 21 local government areas, connecting economic empowerment with civic participation. Such programmes resonate strongly in a country where economic challenges continue to shape youth political consciousness. Recent national reports indicate that over 1.7 million young Nigerians enter the labour market every year, while unemployment and underemployment remain persistent concerns for the youth population.
These realities have transformed political engagement among young Nigerians from a distant civic duty into a question of economic survival and generational opportunity.
Adamawa itself has become an important testing ground for this evolving political energy. Historically regarded as one of northern Nigeria’s politically influential states, the region has recently witnessed a visible expansion of youth-driven civic conversations. Political forums, student organisations, and community platforms across the state’s local governments have increasingly focused on leadership renewal and generational inclusion.
This shift is not limited to Adamawa alone. Across northern states such as Kaduna State, Kano State, and Bauchi State, youth-led political platforms and civic networks have grown steadily over the past decade. Young professionals are declaring interest in legislative positions, contesting local government seats, and seeking leadership roles within political parties.
Yet the structural imbalance between demographics and representation remains stark. Data from parliamentary records shows that within Nigeria’s Senate, only seven of the 106 senators are aged 45 or younger, highlighting the limited presence of younger leaders in national legislative institutions.
This disparity has fuelled a growing national debate about generational representation. Youth advocacy groups have even begun demanding that, at least, 50 per cent of seats in legislative institutions be occupied by younger Nigerians as the country approaches future elections.
It is within this broader national conversation that figures like Abdulrahman Bashir Haske and others are gaining symbolic significance. His rise reflects the possibility that Northern Nigeria may be entering the early stages of a generational political shift.
Haske has led transformative interventions in education, skills development, youth empowerment, and humanitarian support, which have directly impacted thousands of individuals in underserved communities, equipping them with tools for self-reliance and long-term socio-economic advancement. It was further cited that Haske’s advocacy for sports development has also provided platforms for youth engagement, fostering discipline, unity, and community cohesion.
He remains a visionary entrepreneur, philanthropist, and leader whose work has delivered measurable economic and social impact across Northern Nigeria and Africa. Renowned for translating bold ideas into tangible outcomes, he has driven initiatives that expand opportunities, strengthen livelihoods, and promote inclusive development.
A central pillar of his impact is the establishment of a state-of-the-art 48-ton-per-day rice processing mill that revitalized local agriculture, enhanced food security, created sustainable employment, and empowered smallholder farmers by integrating them into a more efficient value chain. Beyond agriculture, his strategic investments across key sectors have stimulated regional growth, improved logistics networks, and opened new frontiers for enterprise and job creation for young people.
For many young Northerners, his trajectory embodies a new political archetype—one that merges entrepreneurship, community engagement, and political ambition. It signals the emergence of leaders who speak the language of both economic opportunity and civic responsibility. Whether this generational momentum ultimately translates into large-scale electoral transformation remains uncertain.
Nigerian politics has historically demonstrated a remarkable capacity to preserve established power structures even in the face of demographic change. Yet, demographic forces possess a persistence that political systems cannot indefinitely resist. In a nation where more than two-thirds of the population is young, the question is no longer whether generational leadership will emerge, but when.
If the current trajectory continues, the coming decade could witness one of the most significant generational transitions in Northern Nigerian politics since the return to democracy in 1999. That transformation will not be defined by a single individual, but by the collective determination of young citizens who increasingly believe their demographic strength must translate into political influence.
In that unfolding story, the rise of Abdulrahman Bashir Haske may ultimately represent something larger than personal ambition. It may represent the first visible signal of a generation preparing to redefine the political direction of the North.
And, if that generation succeeds in transforming its numbers into leadership, historians may one day look back at this moment and recognise it as the period when a young voice from Adamawa helped awaken a political generation ready not merely to inherit the future, but to lead it.
It is within this context that the political parties operate their intra-party activities in a manner that offers young generations of leaders the opportunity to be democratically considered for elected position and not through imposition which do not give opportunity for party members to express their individual voting power.
For the APC in Adamawa, for instance, the stakes could hardly be higher. A miscalculation in candidate selection could inadvertently create openings for rival coalitions eager to reclaim political ground in the state. Conversely, allowing a transparent and inclusive process that reflects the genuine will of party members, and the broader electorate could consolidate the APC’s hold on Adamawa for years to come.
Ultimately, it has been said that the unfolding debate within the party represents more than a contest of ambitions. It is a test of whether the APC will prioritise popular legitimacy over narrow political calculations, which many may consider and interpret as imposition.
This position has also bee well articulated by the National Chairman of APC, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda Goshwe, during a media chat with senior media executives in Abuja last week. According to him, “there is no automatic ticket in our party constitution. The constitution of the party does not provide for automatic ticket. The party cannot wishfully promise automatic ticket to the people.”
He emphasised the advantage of direct primary and also explained the condition for consensus consideration. “Like I keep on saying, with direct primary, there is almost no influence. So, direct primary has eliminated the issue of imposition of candidates. When it comes to consensus, however, all the candidates that have bought the form (for a particular position to contest for) must all sign an undertaken that one person among them is their consensus candidate. So, the issue of imposing candidate is almost a wishful thinking.”
Adekanbi is a UK-based Nigerian political scientist and public analyst.