Revolution.come (2)

All the day
I sat in the deep recess of my mind
Bored of the trend
Just then,
Drumbeats filtered into my ears
Waking me to reality
I heard emerging voices
Behold, the revolution doth come…

Here comes the bard, sorry the poet! It’s just that I have a vision! It’s like a fascinating movie before my eyes! I see Senator Akinlabi Olasunkanmi, the Minister of Youth Development spearheading a revolution! Directly behind him is Mr. Ben Duntoye, the current President of the National Youth Council of Nigeria. Then, there are the state commissioners of youth development in every state and other stakeholders. I see projects getting implemented across the nation, vocational centres, youth centres springing up everywhere, job opportunities, scholarships, and faces of Nigerian youths beaming with smiles!

Yeah! I think revolution is the koko (major) experience we need now in our lives and in Nigeria. Na wetin be revolution sef? Revolution is a drastic and far reaching change in ways of thinking and behaving; a sudden or momentous change in a situation. Sorry, I forgot to tell you I stole dis definition from very a dictionary!

In the last edition, we started the Revolution.come series with the all-time important subject of taking responsibility. Coming from that stream of reasoning, I think it’s high time the government took responsibility for her youths. Many Nigerian youths are frustrated, fagged out and fed up with the system, the situation and the status quo in Nigeria. The reasons are not far-fetched. The harsh economic realities, the declining educational standards, the skyrocketing school-fees, the unbearable rate of unemployment, the ever-rising cost of survival, the incessant corruption headlines on our newspapers almost everyday and other worrisome issues in the polity.

Youths get annoyed whenever they read or hear about the millions and billions of naira stolen by “respectable” people in our country. The painful part is that these corruption cases eventually get swept under the carpet and the culprits go scot-free. Every year, they witness the mismanagement of our resources and they are completely disappointed. They see the voice of justice being silenced. The rule of law has become an exception rather than the rule.

As a result of all this, several youths do not believe in Nigeria’s future. They have lost faith. They are after getting visa to leave this country as soon as possible. And this should not be the case, not even now that we are complaining of brain-drain. Their sense of patriotism has disappeared into the thin air. They probably think like this” Why should I be loyal to a country that doesn’t even appreciate me as a person and does not bother about my progress in life?” The bottom-line is that they seem to have given up on Nigeria and they are asking “Can any good thing can come out of Nigeria?

One can hardly find a youth who is truly proud of Nigeria. But something can be done to remedy the situation. Youths generally perceive the government as indifferent to their plight. Many of them are not even aware of the presence of the Ministry of Youths & Sports. They feel dejected, rejected and neglected. And that is many of them have dumped values and resorted to vices. Unemployment has take toll on youths so much that some have gone into crime of different sorts to make a living.

In a nutshell, governments in Nigeria have failed the youth. Since independence, successive governments have treated youth development as if it is insignificant to our national progress and development. This insensitivity is apparently responsible for the retarded growth in the sector, leading to a crisis and causing a disconnect between the youth and the state. The question is “Who will take the Nigerian youth out of the quagmire?”

It’s time for ACTION! We are tired of long speeches, rhetoric, seminars and workshops all over the place. I think we already have enough bodies/organizations to manage the affairs of Nigerian youths. Ben Duntoye-led National Youth Council of Nigeria happens to be the umbrella body of youth organizations in Nigeria. The burden of the Nigerian youth is on Senator Akinlabi Olasunkanmi, Mr. Ben Duntoye, commissioners in charge of youth development and all other stakeholders like me. I dey do my part!

Victor Hugo said “He who opens a school door closes a prison”. This piece is an appeal to the government to execute projects that will address the different aspects of youth development; job creation, education, establishment of vocational centres, rehabilitation, e.t.c. Fortunately, the current administration is already taking revolutionary steps, but the youths at the grassroots want to feel the positive impact of these projects in their lives.


I’ve got confidence in Senator Akinlabi Olasunkanmi, Mr. Ben Duntoye and the state commissioners. I just believe that they understand the Providence has put them in that position to touch the lives of thousands of youths positively. And I know failure wouldn’t be an option for them. For me, I see a revolution in the pipeline! Don’t think this is a pipe dream! The Nigerian youth is going to smile. Things are going to change. Like several youths out there, am bubbling with optimism and waiting for the revolution…

Idowu Omisore, MRS= Motivation+Relationship+Self-development.