24-year-old Yadoma Bukar Mandara is the youngest of the 492 delegates at the ongoing National Conference in Abuja. She is the last daughter of the late philanthropist and politician, Bukar Umaru Mandara, who was the Zanna Dujima of Borno. The 2011 graduate of Environmental Biology from the University of Maiduguri in her interview with PREMIUM TIMES tells about her experience at the Confab.
PT: What do you do?
Yadoma: I work for the public service and have a foundation that caters for widows and orphans in Borno State.
Yadoma: I work for the public service and have a foundation that caters for widows and orphans in Borno State.
PT: Is it on the platform you came to the National Conference?
Yadoma: I came on the platform of “Other Youth Organisations.”
Yadoma: I came on the platform of “Other Youth Organisations.”
PT: How did you get nominated into the Conference? Was it the government that called you up or did you apply for a seat?
Yadoma: Someone I had never met was asked to nominate a youth from the North East and he felt I can represent the youth. He nominated me and others and I eventually got picked; that is how I came here.
Yadoma: Someone I had never met was asked to nominate a youth from the North East and he felt I can represent the youth. He nominated me and others and I eventually got picked; that is how I came here.
PT: What are your antecedents? I mean you must have done some things that made that person to notice you and nominate you.
Yadoma: Not really! Actually, I always air my opinion. I am especially a writer. I am a blogger. I write about politics although I am not really interested in going into politics. I have particular interest in the way politics is going on in the country. I write my opinion, on my social media space and blog. I also participated in campaigns like ‘Occupy Nigeria.’ When I see injustice I try to raise my voice against it. I also won a state and National award after my service – NYSC/CBN venture prize.
Yadoma: Not really! Actually, I always air my opinion. I am especially a writer. I am a blogger. I write about politics although I am not really interested in going into politics. I have particular interest in the way politics is going on in the country. I write my opinion, on my social media space and blog. I also participated in campaigns like ‘Occupy Nigeria.’ When I see injustice I try to raise my voice against it. I also won a state and National award after my service – NYSC/CBN venture prize.
PT: You were the deputy chairman of a Committee. What kind of treatment did you get from your members who were apparently older than you?
Yadoma: I was deputy chairman of the Committee on Environment. I was deputy to Senator Florence Ita-Giwa. When we started committee work, Mrs. Ita-Giwa asked me what I studied, I told her Environmental Biology and she said that is very nice, I will help her a lot in the proceedings of the Committee. And during my first introduction to the committee members who by far are older than me I would say the only one closer to my age was about 20 years older than myself. I told them I don’t know why I was nominated to be the deputy chairman. In terms of intellect or age they are by far wiser than me and I hope they will give me the opportunity to learn and grow. They said leadership is not by age or what you know. They gave me the maximum cooperation I needed and it was a success.
Yadoma: I was deputy chairman of the Committee on Environment. I was deputy to Senator Florence Ita-Giwa. When we started committee work, Mrs. Ita-Giwa asked me what I studied, I told her Environmental Biology and she said that is very nice, I will help her a lot in the proceedings of the Committee. And during my first introduction to the committee members who by far are older than me I would say the only one closer to my age was about 20 years older than myself. I told them I don’t know why I was nominated to be the deputy chairman. In terms of intellect or age they are by far wiser than me and I hope they will give me the opportunity to learn and grow. They said leadership is not by age or what you know. They gave me the maximum cooperation I needed and it was a success.
PT: During the conference did you see some of your delegate colleagues as being selfish in their contributions to the debate on the president’s speech and the reports of the committees?
Yadoma: Of course! In a conference of about 492 people you should expect some people to be selfish or push their interest first before the interest of the country. Of course some people are being selfish, biased and sentimental in their contributions.
Yadoma: Of course! In a conference of about 492 people you should expect some people to be selfish or push their interest first before the interest of the country. Of course some people are being selfish, biased and sentimental in their contributions.
PT: Were you disappointed?
Yadoma: I’m very much disappointed as a Nigerian but I will say I am glad I came here. If not for anything, I have learnt the political structure of Nigeria and the way things are and why this country is having serious issues in moving forward. I am disappointed as a young person. I told them when I stood up to speak the other day that I was a bit disappointed the way things were going. One of them was asking me why I was disappointed but I was so down and depressed that day that I couldn’t continue. There were points I broke down.
Yadoma: I’m very much disappointed as a Nigerian but I will say I am glad I came here. If not for anything, I have learnt the political structure of Nigeria and the way things are and why this country is having serious issues in moving forward. I am disappointed as a young person. I told them when I stood up to speak the other day that I was a bit disappointed the way things were going. One of them was asking me why I was disappointed but I was so down and depressed that day that I couldn’t continue. There were points I broke down.
PT: How would you have wished they made their contributions?
Yadoma: I wished everybody was thinking Nigeria first before a personal agenda or personal viewpoint. If anything is for Nigeria then it should be for the entirety of Nigeria. That is how I expected people to be. But of course, like I said earlier, you can’t have a cluster of people from different geo-political zones and expect all of them to be objective in their different contributions.
Yadoma: I wished everybody was thinking Nigeria first before a personal agenda or personal viewpoint. If anything is for Nigeria then it should be for the entirety of Nigeria. That is how I expected people to be. But of course, like I said earlier, you can’t have a cluster of people from different geo-political zones and expect all of them to be objective in their different contributions.
PT: Will you be disappointed if the report of this Conference is treated like the previous ones?
Yadoma: Of course I won’t be happy. Four months of hard work, and brain exhaustion, coming here in the morning and leaving late in the evening, sometimes night, it will be terrible if these recommendations are thrown away or kept in the archive. I will be really saddened.
Yadoma: Of course I won’t be happy. Four months of hard work, and brain exhaustion, coming here in the morning and leaving late in the evening, sometimes night, it will be terrible if these recommendations are thrown away or kept in the archive. I will be really saddened.
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