Nigerian Youth Parliament Leadership Training’s Report – Olufemi Adeyemi

Report of The Nigerian Youth Parliament Leadership Training By Prince Olufemi Adeyemi (Oyo Central Senatorial District)

Good afternoon sirs, and ma. I give glory to God Almighty for the safe trip go and fro of the Journey and peaceful staying at the training center. The leadership training scheduled to hold for two weeks but later held for a week.

While at the training, we were taught different leadership skills, leadership lectures and training.

Thou, was little bit ethic with early morning waking for morning exercise and duties, sleep late at night, no sound sleep with mosquito n heat, coupled with endurance treckling of about two hours go, and another two hours back. However, it was at the same time fun filled.

For the very first time in my life,I met with youths across Nigeria i.e (All state able represented by three youths,one from each senatorial district). Hence, the need to embrace leadership mandate to represent the Nigerian Youth from Local government level, Senatorial District, State, within Nigeria and beyond.

At the closure of the Nigerian Youth Parliament Leadership Training all parliamentarians were given an assignment with the topic “The Peace and Unity of Nigeria as it Concerns the Youth. Coming up with the problems that leads to violence and disunity, and solutions to the problems”.

I beseech you all to read through my point of view, add whatever your view is to educate others and carry all along the line of progress as we are all partners in making A New Nigeria.

To start with, What is peace? Peace is the concept of harmonious well-being and freedom from hostile aggression. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or heterogeneous groups.
What is Unity? Unity is the state of different areas or groups being joined together to form a single country or organization. “It’s the opposite of being divided.” This is a word for togetherness or oneness.

What is Youth? Youth is the time of life when one is young, and often means the time between childhood and adulthood (maturity). It is also defined as “the appearance, freshness, vigor, spirit, etc”

Having defined these three ‘crucial words‘,allow me to list the causes of violence, war, disunity among the youth.

1. The Media: Unprofessional media workers, fake news through misuse of facebook, twitters etc and inability to present news to the general audience the way the news is. This is one of the major issues of violence. (For example, I’m at Ibadan now, I can only know what’s going on in other state through media, press release, news, twitter, facebook etc and anyone could be moved by what he/she hear or see.)

2. Substance Abuse: A pattern of repeated drug or alcohol use that often interferes with health, work or social relationships. We all have different alcohol intake ability, some once they drink ends up in social vices activities,such as street fighting, drive carelessly etc.

3. Gangs: A gang is a group of associates, friends or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over territory in a community and engages, either individually or collectively, in illegal, and possibly violent, behavior. I believe we all know example of such. (Militants etc)

4. Unemployment: There is a saying “An idle hand is a devil workshop” Unemployment has triggered so many useful youth into social vices. We can’t blame them, cause we all have different tolerance, challenges, and thinking ability. (Some youth in the hardship of searching for a better job, still need to take care of their aged (and mostly sick) parents, siblings and even in his/her condition still have to bread his/her family members).

5. Weapons: Unlawful possession of weapons donated/given by the politicians, ex-service men, uniform men in the society. They are even well trained more than the Nigeria soldiers. “A case study of offa bank robbery”.

6. Poverty: Poverty is a multifaceted concept, which may include social, economic, and political elements. Absolute poverty, extreme poverty, or destitution refers to the complete lack of the means necessary to meet basic personal needs such as food, clothing and shelter. An able and willing youth that can’t feed himself, we end up in social vices in search of basic needs. That reminds me of my pastor’s quote “If u think been rich will not allow u to serve God, try poverty and u will absolutely forget God exist”

7. Peer Pressure: Peer pressure is the direct influence on people by peers, or the effect on an individual who gets encouraged to follow their peers by changing their attitudes, values or behaviors to conform to those of the influencing group or individual. This can result in either a positive or negative effect. We all know we have the negative side these days of hardship.

8. Broken Homes: Today, we won’t talk about the causes but the societal consequences. Broken home produce youth deprived and denied of quality education, adequate parental care and wider opportunities, and consequently, must times turn out to be social deviants and delinquents with constitution of nuisance in the society as their major stock in tread. Most youth from these suffers love from childhood and tends not to love in return.

9. Poor Family,Environment/Bad Neighborhoods: In Sholom Aleichem quote “Life is a dream for the wise, a game for the fool, a comedy for the rich but a tragedy for the poor”

10. Lack to Good and accessible Education, Intolerance/Ignorance: It saddens my heart what education has become in our nation Nigeria. The bitter truth is that the government is not trying at all. The worst part of it is that of our Religion owned institutions (Christian and Muslim own schools) they are not helping too.
    “Education that was brought to Nigeria by the western Christians free of charge with full encourage now went out of hand for the masses to afford. No middle class children can afford any of the church owned institutions again.
    Civil servant children withdrawing from institution because of exorbitant cost, not to talk about pepper sellers children. In a nutshell, “Education today in Nigeria is no more accessible and affordable to the common man of the nation”. Hence, the high rate of illiterate youth, day by day. You will all agree with me that when they are not educated as you are, they will not reason nor think the same way we do.

Having highlighted these 10 points…. You would all agree with me that “the Solution(s) is/are not far fetched”.

1). There should be restrictions on life threatening News and a way to report any news tantamount to cause disunity /violence among the youth.
2). The government, NGO, individuals should all engage in orientation lectures and advices against substance abuse, unlawful possession of weapons, broken home,also teach how to make a positive results from peer pressure group instead of the negative.
3). Job creation
4). Establish policies that can increase the masses well-being and standard of living.
5). Provide an enabling environment where all can think straight and positively.

Conclusively, 6). Accessible,quality and free Education. According to the best of my knowledge, the best and first solution is giving “Quality and accessible Education to all”
Let the common children on the street be educated, let the children of the poor be educated, let the criminals (Even in Jail), the suspect (even in cell) be educated. “Education must be free again” that’s the best way to curb disunity and violence among the youth at the long run. “Then and only then, we can have a nation where justice, peace and unity reigns” Thanks.

Prince Olufemi Adeyemi
Oyo Central Senatorial District

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