Hammed Shittu in Ilorin
The Director-General of the National Orientation Agency(NOA), Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, has attributed the incessant security challenges facing the country on the collapse of societal values and loss of cultural identities.
Issa-Onilu, however, said: “In order to overcome the numerous social vices and insecurity bedeviling the country, there is urgent need for youth social orientation.”
He made this disclosure in Ilorin, Kwara State, yesterday during the 10th year anniversary of Royal News online publication and the unveiling of a book titled: ‘Habibat Salman Said: “The Diplomatic Administrator and a Princess of The Emirate’.
Represented at the event by the state Director of NOA, Mr. Olusegun Adeyemi, Onilu said: “We are a youthful country. By that, I meant the demographics of our country. About 72 per cent of our population is below the age of 35. In other words, not less than 165 million of our estimated 220 million population are within the Gen Z and the millennia. We can see that the most critical challenge we face is orienting our youths to be the best of us.
“More than any time in the life of our country, the government, our traditional institutions, community leaders, and the clerics must rise to face the future of Nigeria.
“In a constantly evolving world, we must help our youths navigate the complexities of social relationships and interactions.
“Today’s youths are not tomorrow’s leaders; they already lead in many endeavours. The sad reality is that they are leading without guidance. The leaders of yesterday abandoned the ship even when they did not nurture the youths with the right values.
“We are now in a society where our youths are ill-equipped due to no faults of theirs, but are the change-makers, the innovators, and the torchbearers of our society.”
Issa- Onilu added: “Like in many other countries, youths in Nigeria are often associated with prevalent social vices.
“These vices can be attributed to various factors, including poverty, unemployment, lack of education, cultural norms, peer pressure, and societal influence.”
Issa- Onilu noted that: “To address these security threats, tackling the root causes of youth idleness and lack of training is crucial. This requires effective policies to reduce unemployment, provide skill training, and improve educational opportunities.
“The good news is that it is not too late to redirect the ship. Therefore, our collective responsibility is to provide the youths with the necessary skills and values to succeed and thrive in a diverse and interconnected world.”
In his opening address, the Publisher of Royal News online, Malam AbdulAzeez Arowona, expressed delight that the medium has been instrumental to so many positive changes in the society in the past years.
He said the medium was founded “out of the divine love, compassion and commitments towards promoting our highly respected traditional rulers irrespective of their classes, ethnicity and religious affiliations with the singular aim of promoting peaceful co-existence in our country.”
