The Nigerian youth is undoubtedly one of the most psychologically traumatized persons in the world. Faced with extreme penury, unletteredness, joblessness, health concerns, homelessness and pennilessness, the Nigerian youth invariably finds it difficult to live a meaningfully decent life compared to how his or her counterpart dwells in well organized and highly developed climes. Unfortunately, the plight of the average Nigerian youth is nauseatingly exacerbated by the perennial nonchalance and insensitivity of government at all levels. Although, government (especially at federal and state levels) has, over the years, put in place policies aimed at alleviating the sufferings of the youth, not much ice seems to have been cut in terms of youth empowerment, youth employment and overall youth development.
A renowned playwright and Africa’s frontline literary giant, Professor Wole Soyinka, was recently reported to have painted a pathetic picture about the 21st century Nigerian youth making particular reference to his (Nigerian youth) inability to rise to the occasion when issues of national concerns are brought to the front burner. He said and I quote, “Awolowo was 37 years, Akintola 36, Ahmadu Bello 36, Balewa 34, Okotie-Eboh 27, and Anthony Enahoro 27 and they led the struggle for Nigeria independence after the death of Macaulay. Only Zik (Nnamdi Azikwe) was 42 at the time. In 1966, the first military coup was led by Kaduna Nzeogwu who was 29 years and countered by M. Muhammed 28, T. Danjuma 28, I. Babangida 25, J. Garba 23, S. Abacha 23, and M. Yar’adua 23 and brought into power Yakubu Gowon 32. Ojukwu 33, Obasanjo 29 and Buhari 24! Most of the military governors who governed the states under the successive military regimes were under 30 years. Also, the brief democratic dispensation which interjected the military interregnums also saw some Senators and members of the House of Representatives, in particular populated by persons under 30! Under 30’s were also not in short supply with appointments- we have examples of M.T. Mbu who became Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister at 23 and Pat Utomi who became a federal Adviser at 27 and so on and so forth.”
Professor Soyinka went on to ask some salient questions thus: ‘why is it that almost all this age bracket is today still sleeping in 3-seater chairs in their parents’ homes? Why is it that this age bracket is today still collecting pocket money from their parents? Why is it that this age bracket is today still seeking for jobs and not yet married? Why is this age bracket today no longer qualified to even be leaders of youth wings of political parties? Why is it that this age bracket is so docile? Why is this age bracket today incapable of feeding itself? Why is it that this age bracket is today barred from even aspiring to certain political offices? Why is it that this age bracket is today incapacitated, unwilling, unable and incapable of asking questions?”
Apparently, these are thought provoking questions that require deep soul searching answers which are not far- fetched. Now, the objective of this piece is to painstakingly respond to some of the questions posed by Professor Soyinka by enumerating and analyzing some of the remote and immediate factors that led to the production of docile, jobless, impecunious, indolent and helpless Nigeria youths we see on the streets of Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt among other major cities in Nigeria. This piece also has the task of providing some panacea that can, in the short and long terms, help Nigerian youth get out of the woods and be repositioned to compete favourably among his peers elsewhere around the world. To put this issue in proper perspective and set the record straight, Nigerian youths, during pre independence movement and up to the mid 1980’s, were reputed for their bravery, diligence, honesty, patriotism, pro-activism and a sense of brotherhood. Most of them particularly the ebullient nationalist figures were able to carve a niche for themselves and constituted a formidable anti-colonial force that fought doggedly for the emancipation of Nigeria from the yoke of colonialism. All over the world, Nigerian youths were highly esteemed for their display of cerebral and educative capacity which robbed off positively on nation building. If the Nigeria system in the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and mid 1980s could produce the like of Awolowo, Enahoro, Ojukwu and others who occupied leadership positions at very young age and excelled in their chosen fields of human endeavour, what then went wrong or amiss with the same Nigeria system where the quest for the emergence of youths with sound leadership qualities has become a desideratum?
A legion of factors could be said to be responsible for the deterioration of value and leadership qualities in the type of youths Nigeria parades in the 21st century. These dynamics include systemic or institutional fiasco, political exclusionism, low standard of education/inactive unionism, lack of visionary and missionary youths, erosion of core moral values, lack of exposure and other environmental challenges.
One of the raison d’être for the inability of today’s youths in their 30s to assume leadership positions is systemic failure. Institutionally, the Nigerian state, through the emergence of successive military and democratically elected administrations, has contributed adversely to the kind of poor, uneducated, unemployed, destitute and penniless youths we see at every nook and cranny of the society today. The policies and programmes of successive governments since the mid 1980s were or have been seldom youth centered or pro-youth development and consequently, such did not take into cognizance the fundamental issues that affected and still affect the lives and socio-economic well being of the youths. I am of the candid opinion that had the system created the same enabling environment that threw up the Awolowo’s of this world, perhaps today’s youths (within the age bracket under discourse) would have found themselves in more advantageous position to effectively harness their God given potentials and even surpass the sterling accomplishments of their forebear or erstwhile national heroes and heroines.
Our current educational sector, in spite of its rot, produces students who complete their university education at the age of 19 or 20 years. We have seen Nigerian youths in their mid 20s and late 20s bagging Masters and PhD degrees from our ivory towers. Recently, Ayodele Dada, a student at the Department of Psychology, University of Lagos and an indigene of Ekiti State, graduated with an unprecedented 5:00 CGPA and emerged as the overall best graduating student in the history of not only University of Lagos but other tertiary institutions in Nigeria. These are examples showing the intellectual caliber and prowess of most Nigerian youths. Would one then say that this kind of students lack the cerebral and administrative capacity to be president, vice president, governor, deputy governor, senators, members of the House of Representatives, members of the State Houses of Assembly, federal ministers, state commissioners, local government chairman and even councilors? Or would it not be tantamount to erroneous deduction that this kind of young and intelligent youths cannot steer the administrative ships of industries, financial establishments, ministries, agencies and parastatals and other corporate outfits if given the opportunity to assume such positions? If the educational system churns out exceptionally brilliant and highly cerebral youths who are graduates, masters and Ph.D degree holders and at very early age, what factors condition such students or youths to be unproductive and unemployed up to the age bracket of mid 30s and even early 40s?
Among the commonest constraints to the alarming rate of youth unemployment include favoritism, nepotism, ethnic and religious considerations which more often than none elevate mediocrity above meritocracy with their attendant effects of inefficiency, low productivity, impunity, corruption, ineptitude, bureaucracy and poor service delivery. It is harrowing that most qualified graduates and youths can hardly find befitting jobs to do either because they are not well connected or cannot play ball by paying back in kind or cash. I ran into an old friend recently in Lagos who said he rued being a graduate having sought for job without any headway ten years after graduation from the university with a Second Class Upper. At 37, he could hardly take care of himself let alone pondering about marriage! I felt so bad but could only console him with words of encouragement and optimism of a better tomorrow. This is just one of thousands of youths in his type of shoes waiting for miracle to have their lives turned around for better. Would it not be unfair and ridiculous to blame unemployed youths for their inability to get employment at young age in a system that cares less about creating jobs or providing the enabling ambience for jobs to be created? In advanced countries, a welfarist scheme or what is called social safety net exists to cater for the needs of unemployed citizens until they are able to secure employment of their choice. The trendy advice from government and private sector leaders that youths should be creative enough to be entrepreneurs is a welcome development but that in itself is not a cake walk with the system grossly enmeshed in infrastructural challenges such as epileptic power supply, high interest rate on soft loans and poor road networks among others.
Another factor is political exclusionism which gainsays youths the opportunity to be active players in the political space cum electoral process. Members of the political class, most often, prefer to engage helpless and unemployed youths in committing atrocious acts such as electoral violence, political assassination and other social vices to mentoring and empowering them to be responsible members of the society. Today, youths are used as thugs and political assassins by politicians without the latter minding whose ox is gored. They can afford to send their wards to the best schools abroad but take delight in the pauperization of the less privileged. This is one of the sad realities that characterize the life of an average Nigeria youth today. Ideally, educated, well employed and empowered youths should lead the struggle for the attainment of an egalitarian Nigerian state where good governance, social justice, rule of law, accountability, integrity, probity, economic prosperity and public service delivery should be the order of the day but again, the reverse is the case as the pangs of poverty, homelessness and joblessness have reduced today’s youths to stooges, sycophants and praise-singers all in the name of survival.
Educational or academic activism on our campuses has been at its lowest ebb due to the antithetical posture of the totalitarian authorities in most of the universities. Gone are the days when Nigerian student leaders pioneered and steered the ships of vibrant and articulate student unionism on our campuses. Student unionism began in 1925 with the emergence of West African Student Union (WASU) which had, in its fold, a couple of Nigerians who played pivotal role in the struggle leading to the attainment of sovereignty of African states in the early 1960s. The National Union of Nigerian Students (NUNS) inherited the same spirit of idealism from WASU and also contributed to the promotion of academic excellence and improved students’ welfare. It would be recalled that while NUNS under the leadership of Segun Okeowo became directly involved in national politics for proper funding of education for Nigerian students, it suffered all forms of brutality and intimidation under the administration of a man that saw nothing good in Nigerian students and who had zero tolerance to student unionism, General Olusegun Obasanjo. Obasanjo placed ban on NUNS but for the intervention of Alhaji Shehu Shagari’s administration that lifted the ban, a development that gave birth to the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) in 1980. The point being made here alludes to my earlier submission that some of our national leaders who rose to stardom in their early and late 20s, either by accident or design, contributed to the problems besetting youths of today.
Instances are abound of scenarios where military and civilian hegemonies made decisively draconian move to silent student or youth leaders who were bent on ventilating their grievances on issues and policies that affected the welfare of students negatively. Today, many student union governments exist as mere puppet bodies whose leaders are inclined to act according the whims and caprices of the power that be without questioning. This is part of the dilemma today’s youth faces. Who then is responsible for the incapacitation of the Nigerian youth who Professor Soyinka called “docile, jobless, unmarried, broke and passive?”
Besides the aforementioned, some youths are no doubt, architects of their own misfortune and fate. This type of youths lack clear cut vision and mission and naturally become ready tools in the hands of all manners of character especially politicians who deploy them to perpetrate crimes and other forms of anti social behaviour. They are indolent, hangers-on, passive, morally bankrupt, treacherous and criminally minded. They are usually not interested in personal assessment let alone setting goals and objectives for themselves to be achieved within a specific timeline. They despise working but love earning income whether by hook or crook. They generally pose a threat to the peace and security of their community, environment and society at large. This is the category of youths who do drugs, philandering and cyber crime. They need rehabilitation, counseling, re-orientation and re-integration back into the society.
However, there is a ray of hope for the Nigerian youths who are the real leaders of tomorrow. First, at the level of institution, the government at all levels must ensure the provision of enabling environment through the formulation and implementation of pro-youth development policies and programmes. Such policies and programmes should capture sound and qualitative education at reasonable and affordable cost for the youths, provision of loan facility that can spur the proliferation of more small and medium enterprises for youths, encouragement of vocational and leadership training, employment generation through the ministries, departments and agencies of government at every level, and recognition of excellence through presentation of national awards to outstanding youths to be tagged “ National Youth Leadership Award”. More importantly, the federal government should intensify more effort in the implementation of the principle of federal character in the distribution of public office positions. This helps to promote equity, fairness, nationalism and patriotism among Nigerians and the youths in particular.
The current interest and determination expressed by the Buhari’s administration to diversify the Nigerian economy is a right step in the right direction as the thinking is timely given the poor performance of the oil sector in recent time. But the implementation of the newly signed budget especially areas in the budget that address youth development is also very critical. Youths should be substantially involved in the diversification agenda of the present administration as this engages them and ultimately helps in solving the unemployment quagmire in the country. Kudos to the Buhari led federal government for taking the bold step to recruit 10,000 police officers to strengthen security of lives and property and also combat organized crime but more certainly need to be done to alleviate the sufferings of the youths and Nigerians in general.
Second, the civil society organizations have to be more pro active and responsive to the challenges militating against youth development. Various interventionist mechanisms such as organizing youth leadership training seminars and conferences and provision of financial assistance can be explored to help our youths rediscover their innate potentials and mentor them to harness such potentials for personal, family, community and societal growth and development. The issue of restoring the lost core moral values among the youths can also be addressed by CSOs involved in youth affairs and activities. This will go a long way in reducing corruption, indiscipline, lack of respect for elders, indecency, delinquency, prostitution, drug trafficking and other social crimes.
Third, the private sector should not only complement the effort of government in the area of job creation for the youths but must try as much as they can to review their policies with a view to guaranteeing the security of such jobs. The issue of age restriction as employment criterion should be reviewed provided such prospective employee (s) possess the requisite experience required for the post being applied for.
Fourth, the educational sector needs to be restructured by infusing into school curricula vocational and entrepreneurial subject and course at the secondary and tertiary levels respectively. The acquisition of such skills strengthens the capacity of graduates to be creative and create jobs for themselves and cease relying on government for the ever evasive jobs. With the right policy and support from the government, this doable initiative will add up in terms of reducing the chronic rate of youth unemployment to its barest minimum.
Fifth, the youths themselves must accord enormous premium to education. The desire to read and acquire new knowledge must be accorded top priority in their day-to-day routines. Youths should embrace attitudinal challenge and jettison the mentality of get-rich-quick which aggravates the bottlenecks of graft, impunity, ritual killings, crime and the like. More significantly, today’s youths must exercise self and personal discipline and develop the courage to be creative, do the right thing at the right time and at the right place. Not less important is the need to cultivate the spirit of hardwork, patriotism and selfless service among youths. Our youths must be bold and courageous to resist pecuniary inducement or temptation of members of the political class by asking them to use their own wards to carry out all sort of nefarious conducts before, during and after elections. I am glad though that Nigerian youths are gradually waking up from their slumber regarding the experiences at the 2015 general elections in which some youths collected money from power thirsty politicians and did not cast their votes for them. Such attitude is encouraging and needs to be sustained if our democracy must be deepened.
Our youths need to be more vociferous in decrying corruption and its practitioners in the society. The youths can also play invaluable role in holding public office holders accountable and can participate actively in recalling erring or politicians who have been found wanting or alleged to have abused power or misappropriated public funds for their parochial interest.
On a final note, the challenges of today’s youths are issues that require the concerted effort of all and sundry. For them to be responsible citizens, employed, diligent, pro active and agents of positive change at their early ages, the system has be overhauled and the attitude of the youths has be altered. Other stakeholders such as parents, teachers, university authority, civil society organizations and private sector must play their role so that our youths can occupy their rightful position in the scheme of things in the country and beyond and we can all be proud of them as good and worthy ambassadors.