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BEYOND THE MATTERS OF ETERNITY - DON'T BLAME THE YOUTHS...

Simon Kolawole is a respected global and renowned writer, and is one of the writers who have greatly influenced me since his days as a reporter at Complete Football to Thisday Newspapers, and currently The Cable online website for which he is currently the CEO. My Sundays are not complete until I have read his weekly article – Simon Kolawole Live on Thisday Sunday’s edition back page (online). This past week, I came across a very rich article of his which I think should be a compelling read for everyone. I therefore decided to adopt it for Beyond The Matters of Eternity Column today as it has serious implication for all and sundry. Enjoy the excerpts below. You can get the full article on Thisday Online.
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In 1985, or was it 1986, a top official of the Babangida administration said something that, up till today, I am still struggling to understand. The naval officer and member of the Armed Forces Ruling Council (AFRC) said: “We are over-pampering the youth when we call them leaders of tomorrow.” I now can’t remember the occasion or the context, but I was already a teenager at the time and was used to the popular expression that “the youth are the leaders of tomorrow”. It was a simple, indisputable statement and a natural fact, I always thought. I, therefore, couldn’t understand his proclamation. Maybe I was too young to appreciate it.
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I am much older now and if you ask me to interpret that statement, I would still struggle. Maybe he meant it as a deliberate check on youthful exuberance. Maybe he meant the youth should be reminded of their responsibilities since more emphasis was being constantly paid to their rights. Maybe he meant there is more to leadership than the youth were being told, and being called “leaders of tomorrow” had the power to intoxicate, rather than motivate, them. Whatever he meant, though, the face value of the statement was awful. Imagine if there was social media then: the man would have been slaughtered electronically...
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My third, and final, observation is that people who spend so much time on Twitter, Facebook and comment sections on websites — where the youth certainly predominate — have since concluded that the future of Nigeria is doomed going by the messages of hate and the gush of bile on the social media. I have heard people ask: is this the kind of youth that you call leaders of tomorrow? There is also the worrisome bit about the quality of contributions to debate. There is usually shallowness and a poor understanding of the basic issues. There is the sad aspect of the lack of understanding of history. All these are legitimate worries. I, myself, am very disturbed by this.

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But, please, don’t blame the youth. You reap what you sow. How much investment has Nigeria made in them? We all know what education system has become. Only the privileged can send their children to quality schools these days, and how many are so privileged in a country of 180 million people? We have ended up with an overwhelming population of youth wreaking havoc on the internet and on the streets. What did we do 20 years ago, 10 years ago to prepare them for today? How were their minds shaped? Can they give what they don’t have? How are we preparing them today for their tomorrow? How are their minds being shaped? Is there any change?
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Progressive societies deliberately build the future of their youth. They deliberately give them good education. They deliberately mentor them through various programmes and schemes. They deliberately give them opportunities to express themselves and put their skills to use. They deliberately build their experience and self-confidence. They don’t tell them “we are over-pampering you by calling you leaders of tomorrow”. They deliberately prepare them for leadership. So a 39-year-old Macron can be president of France, but in Nigeria it will be front-page news today if a 30-something year old is appointed a presidential adviser. Rethink.
Source: Thisday online.com

Dearly Beloved, what is your submission on the above? Are the youths to be blamed or not? What do you think is the way forward for our youths? Your comments will be highly appreciated.


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