Abstract
The study emphasized the contribution of language to the attitude and behaviour of youths towards voting. Language has power on attitudes and behaviour of youths as the politicians address and give directives to their supporters and followers through language which in turn influences the attitudes and behaviour of supporters and followers towards the political decision making. Youths are persuaded and used as tools to foment trouble in all part of the country so as to distabilise the peace of the society at large. They are even used by politicians as kingpins or thugs in different electoral offences based on their utterances before, during and after the political process. The negative attitude of these youths manifests in behaviours like thuggery, assassination, protest, indolence, intolerance, assault, defacing of posters, chanting of slogans, threat and apathy. These acts are considered to jeopardise national development as well as the credibility of the electioneering processes. Language may possibly, reverse electoral decision in favour of a particular individual, group or political party. Voter education could be an effort to create among citizens a new set of culturally defining “habits of the heard” which will enhance citizenship, foster a sense of connectedness to a community stretching beyond the schools and ultimately support the practices, basic value and institutions necessary for a democratic process. The paper looked into the concept of voting, voter education, youths’ attitude and behaviour towards voting in Nigeria, language and the electoral process, language and politics, language position in Nigeria, effects of language, and strategies for improving youths’ attitude and behaviour towards voting in Nigeria. Keywords: Language, Attitude, Behaviour, Voting, Voter Education DOI: 10.7176/RHSS/12-4-07 Publication date: February 28 th 2022
Highlights
In a democratic society, electorates are entitled to actively participate in the electoral process
At times some of their utterances may be negative or positive, depending on how people take it and react to it. These problems of the language, attitudes and behaviour of youths during political process seem to be as a result of lack of adequate use of language in voter education in order to increase voting
Taking advantage of low level of education, poverty, lack of exposure of most Nigerians which are invariably on the majority constituted the acceptance and absorption of political language of politicians in Nigeria by the electorates. It appears that mass literacy education among the youths in form of voter education is the only tool of breaking ignorance and apathy noted with electoral process in Nigeria, which, all along, have militated against the development of her potentials as a nation
Summary
Electorates are entitled to actively participate in the electoral process. In Nigeria democratic system, it is the duty, rights and responsibilities of youths to participate in political process in a way that they are agile, active and the working class who contribute immensely to economic, political, social and physical development of the country.
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