Coalition of Nigerian youths call on Buhari to address insecurity, restructuring, national development

A coalition of Nigerian youths from the various geopolitical zones in north and south in a new year message called on President Muhammadu Buhari to address the lingering crisis of insecurity, heed to advocates for restructuring and national development.

The youths coalition on the platform of the Nigerian Youth Coalition (NYC) in a Communiqué at the end of an extraordinary virtual meeting held on December 20, 23, 28, 29 and 30, 2020, expressed extreme perturbation over the current discouraging state of the nation and the prevailing situation of the Nigerian youths in relation to the gloomy future the youths face in the country. The National Youths Coalition in series of extensive virtual deliberations during the December 2020 coordinated by its President, Aare Oladotun Hassan Esq. who is also the Global President, Yoruba Council of Youths Worldwide (YCYW) and Chairman, Coalition of Southern Groups (CSG), called on President Buhari to act fast to save the country from impending disaster already signaled by a second economic recession in five years of the All Progressives Congress (APC) government.

Participants in the meeting include the Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG), Coalition of Southern Groups (CSG), Arewa Youth Council (AYC), Yoruba Council of Youths Worldwide, Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide, Ohaneze Youth Council Worldwide, National Youth Council of Nigeria, North East Development Youth Initiative, and National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS).

The Coalition in a statement on Friday by the Publicity Secretary,

Com. Abdulaziz Suleiman, disclosed that the participants in consensus made the following resolutions:

Guiding principles:

1. The NYC shall for all intents and purposes remain apolitical and solely aimed to build stronger national consensus on all issues of mutual and urgent national importance.
2. The NYC with the slogan, “Nation building is our collective responsibility” shall at all times, endeavour to encourage the quest for solid delivery of dividends of democracy on economic growths and political stability in Nigeria viz unity, peace, restructuring, succinct constitutionalism, national security, robust development and cohesion among the Nigerian youths who are the legitimate claimants to shaping the country’s today and future.
3. Emphasized the need for collectivism over regionalism or ethnic considerations in dealing with the common hydra headed challenges of insecurity, human rights violations, corruption, divisiveness, nepotism and poor governance.

Youth development:

The sessions frowned at the general decay in the nation’s educational sector, characterized by closure of institutions as a result of intermittent industrial actions and other avoidable situations, consequently NYC unanimously agreed to endorse:

1. Submission of three draft Executive Bills through the Minister of Youth and Sport Development, Sunday Dare to President Muhammadu Buhari, and another via Memoranda to the joint Committees on the 1999 Constitutional review seeking among other things:
2. Education Rights Laws to allocate not less 25% budgetary allocation to the education sector.
3. Promotion of the compulsory teaching and learning of History, Anti-Corruption and Code of Conduct Studies.
4. Inclusion of Moral Instruction and National Security Studies, introduction of various indigenous languages and culture in our educational curriculums at all levels.
5. Establishment law on the National Youth Development Commission and enactment of the National Youth Right Laws as grand norm of the federation once the new constitution is passed.

They resolved that: –

1. The Commission shall aim to establish a National Youth Data Base, through issuance of National Youth Identification Cards for adolescents and youths within the ages of 12 to 45 years.

1. Seek the compulsory allotment of 10% monthly remittance from the Federation Accounts, 5% Telecommunications Tariff Charges from all the telecommunications companies operating in Nigeria and 5% Oil and Gas Sales Charges from NNPC, NLNG and other private multinational firms to be deposited into the National Youth Trust Fund, alongside the recent 75 Billion Presidential Youth Investment Funds and all other Youth related funds and projects.

iii. Target all Nigerian youths irrespective of ethnicity, social status or area of domicile through the establishment of a National Youth Micro Finance Banks scheme with branches spread in all parts of the 36 States and FCT/774 Local Government Areas.

Insecurity

The meeting was agitated that Nigeria is today unable to provide fundamental societal requirements and basic services to its citizens such as security, justice, governance, human rights, health, education, housing, welfare, and employment.

NYC noted that no nation would hope to prosper and progress when the bulk of its citizens are poor, sick and having to live unsecured lives.

In this regard, NYC resolved on the following key proposed:

1. To demand from the Federal Government a declaration of state of emergency on the security sector, particularly in the North and other parts of the South.
2. Impress the need to build a virile community joint security task force and policing strategy via the establishment of a National Joint Regional Security Network Commission, with laid down laws and regulatory guidelines by the Federal Government.
3. This shall provide Nigerians the opportunity for concerted intelligence and information sharing, as well as maximization of the benefits of information technology in security management, while proposing a special intervention Funds named: National Joint Regional Security Trust Funds, which shall ensure the provisions of adequate infrastructures, gadgets and equipment, while soliciting unalloyed moral supports from the Federal,  States and Local Governments concurrently, these strategic pragmatic measures shall work closely with the Nigeria Police and other security agencies.
4. Need for an urgent cross regional cooperation in order to collectively work together with the North and other Southern regions to aggressively combat the rising terrorist threats and banditry in the country.

The youths reiterated their demands for urgent mapping out of the forest density areas in the North viz-a-viz Sambisa, Kamuku, Damari and Felgore forests in the North, while same should be replicated in the Southern parts like: Ijebu Ode, Ibadan, Kishi, Ibarapa, Benin Ore, Ondo Owoh, Enugu and other strategic locations, through the construction of Military Camps, NSJTF Base and, conversion of the forest creeks into Agricultural Reserved Areas, massive construction of accessible roads to access the local areas strategically linking up those villages that are located in the rural communities to the  hinterlands, through grade ‘A’ trunk roads and other adjacent feeder roads, among others.

4. Insist on demands for the total revamp and overhaul of the nation’s security institutions, especially the need to change the service chiefs after fulfilling their statutory and mandatory tenures of service.

NYC Structure

The meeting unanimously ratified the list of officials of the NYC National Coordinating Council (NCC) presented by the President as follows:

• Aare Oladotun Hassan Esq. –

President.

• Barr. Pereotubo Roland Oweilaemi – Vice President, South-South zone
• Comrade Dotun Omoleye,

Vice President, South West zone.

• Mazi Alex Okemiri – Vice President, South East zone.
• Comrade Mohammed A Mohammed – Vice President, North Central zone.
• Comrade Dauda Mohammed Gombe – Vice President, North East zone.
• Comrade Muhammadu Mujtaba – Vice President, North West zone.
• Comrade Dogo Shagari –

Secretary General.

• Alh. Abdulaziz Sulaiman –

Publicity Secretary

• Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro –

Organizing Secretary.

• Amb. Margaret Oyinkansola Ajibola – Chief of Staff/Director of Administration.
• Comrade Usman Abdullahi –

Chief Press Secretary.

• Com. Sunday Asefon – Director of Student Affairs.
• Amb. Michael Adenaike -Director of IT/Data Management.
• Amb. Danlami Ibrahim Jada –

Director of Protocol.

• Amb. Ajibode Abdulkabir Olawale – Assistant Secretary General.
• Comrade Gbadamosi Olajide Rasheed – Deputy Chief of Staff.
• Comrade Samuel Adegbola -Personal Assistant to the President.

The Nigerian Youth Coalition emphasised exclusive inculcation of the spirit of virtuousness, integrity and collectivism towards attaining unity and national development.

The coalition declared nation building is the collective responsibility of all members of the Nigerian Youth Coalition (NYC).