Nigerian youth tasked on political participation

A Non-Governmental Organisation, Positive Force Forum, on Saturday brought young persons together for a leadership seminar in Modakeke community of Osun State.

The seminar which debuted in 2018 is in its second year.

With the theme: “Effective and Efficient Political Leadership” the seminar held at St Stephens Government Middle School, in Modakeke. It focused on youth political participation and leadership grooming.

The convener of the forum, Titilayo Ayotunde, a lecturer at the Department of Demography and Social Statistics, Obafemi Awolowo University, said the major aim of the gathering is to groom youth towards good governance.

“The educated youths need to come back together to influence others. It is on this vision that I want us to come together. Politics is not just for experienced people. We also have our role in ensuring that normalcy is restored in our grassroots”, he said.

The guest speaker, Adebayo Abayomi, a professor of Economics at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, said the youth have a role to play in political leadership and other responsibilities to the community.

To play this role, he enjoined them to be actively involved in the political processes.

“Leadership is key to direction and it is time we start highlighting the problem of our leaders. We have leaders who don’t have experience and it is time we all come in.

“To perfect change in this part all the world, we all need to get involved and our orientation that politics is meant for some people must change.”

Mr Abayomi said the solution to the myriads of problems bedevilling the country is not increment in workers’ salaries but the failure of the government to properly manage our resources.

He said that if our resources are well managed, everyone at the grassroots would find a good job and provide for his or her family.

Corroborating the professor, Wale Amusan, a former executive chairman of Ife -East Area Office, said the change in orientation should be from the grassroots to the top.

“To have effective and efficient political leadership, we must start from the bottom to the top. We must all be involved. It is not right to say politics is meant for some people. It is for all of us.

The chairman of the programme, Fatai Kolawole, who is the Permanent Secretary of SUBEB in Osun State, charged the youth to understudy the present leadership to prepare themselves for future leadership roles.

He added that the future has already started for the youth present.

Some of the attendees who spoke with this newspaper embraced the idea of exposing them to grassroots politics.