Imagine waking up tomorrow and deciding you’re done with politics. No more Twitter arguments,No more politicians,No more elections. Cool,Now go buy fuel. That’s the thing about politics. You can ignore it, but you can’t ignore the things it affects. And before you go into this week, I want you to think about a few things. Fuel is now around ₦1,400–₦1,500 per litre in parts of Nigeria. The latest NBS multidimensional poverty survey found that about 133 million Nigerians were living in multidimensional poverty. The World Food Programme projects that nearly 35 million Nigerians will face acute food insecurity during the 2026 lean season. Nigeria is also ranked 4th in the world on the 2026 Global Terrorism Index, based on data from 2025. And on Transparency International’s 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index, Nigeria ranked 142nd out of 182 countries. Then there’s healthcare. In 2023, about 72% of Nigeria’s current health expenditure was paid directly out of people’s pockets. Not the government. Not insurance. People. And WHO data shows Nigeria’s health expenditure was only about 3.9% of GDP in 2023. The health system is also dealing with staff shortages, uneven distribution of healthcare workers and the migration of health professionals out of the country. (WHO | Regional Office for Africa⁠) And this is the part that really gets me. Nigeria’s health observatory reports a maternal mortality ratio of 1,047 deaths per 100,000 live births and a health-service availability index of just 42%. These numbers can sound distant when you read them online. Until you realise that behind every number is an actual person. Your Dad,Your mum,Your brother,Your friend,Your neighbour and Maybe even you. And even if you’re financially comfortable, you probably know people who aren’t. That’s why I find it difficult when people say “Politics isn’t my business.” Because it becomes your business when fuel prices go up. When food gets more expensive. When electricity becomes unreliable. When healthcare becomes something you have to pray you never desperately need. When insecurity affects where you can travel. When government policies determine whether a business survives or shuts down. You don’t have to spend your entire day arguing about politicians. You don’t have to become a political activist. But please, at least pay attention. Because politics isn’t just elections. It isn’t just politicians shouting at each other on TV. Politics is the decision making behind a lot of the things you complain about every single day. So yes, you can choose not to care about politics. But politics has never needed your permission to affect your life.