Last month, when President Muhammadu Buhari left Nigeria for the United Kingdom (UK), the official release from his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, stated that he was leaving to attend the Commonwealth Business Forum from April 18 to 20, as well as meeting with certain personalities, who would also be in attendance at the business meeting.
But, the question is: must the president leave the country nine days before the event he was to attend started? Is this just one of those classic examples of profligacy of the government? President Buhari’s meeting with the British Prime Minister did not last for nine days, but the president left days earlier. For each day the president spent in London, it cost Nigerian tax payers fortunes to sustain him.
During the UK forum, President Buhari was speaking on issues relating to human capital development and the economy, where he said: “About the economy, we have a very young population; our population is estimated conservatively to be 180 million. This is a very conservative one. More than 60% of the population is below 30, a lot of them haven’t been to school and they are claiming that Nigeria is an oil producing country, therefore, they should sit and do nothing, and get housing, healthcare and education free.”
Weighing the import of the statement, many people immediately concluded the president had de-marketed his country on such global platform. Beyond that, the president’s submission was a complete fallacy. It is simply not right on the basis of image cultivation and national promotion for president of a nation to utter such words. This reminds of a similar situation in 2017 when Mr. President, while making a comment before a German audience, said his own wife was meant for his kitchen and “the other room”.
Mr. President has, after three years in office, not come to realise that his words and actions go a long way in shaping the image of the country among the comity of nations.
Let us place President Buhari’s statement under an x-ray and check its validity. There are many youths who would beg to differ on the ‘lazy’ tag that has been placed on them. People like a 32-year-old co-founder of Red Media Africa, Adebola Williams, would object the president’s statement. Tagged by the Ghanaian president, Nana Akufo-Addo, as “the man with the golden touch”, Adebola Williams, who is fondly called Debola Lagos, has helped three African presidents get elected, including Buhari himself.
Chude Jideonwo, a 33-year-old co-founder of Red Media Africa and Joy Inc, is another example hardworking young Nigerian. Chude is the author of the award-winning book, How to win elections in Africa. He has been as a media influencer in general elections of African countries, such as Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya and Liberia. He has received numerous awards in recognition of his impact on the continent, some of which include: Yale World Fellow 2017, Business Day 40 Under 40 (2012), CNBC Young Business Leader of the Year and Under 30 Africa’s Best Young Entrepreneurs.
Japheth Omojuwa, another is another hardworking Nigerian. The 33-year-old is a king on social media in promoting good values, including media influencing and public relations. He has featured on local and international media platforms, such as Leadership, Punch, CNN, BBC and Al Jazeera, among others. His articles have also been translated into different languages, some of which include: German, French, Portuguese and Greek. Named in 2015 by Credit Suisse Bulletin as one of the 50 Movers and Shakers of Africa and in 2016, he was named Best Twitter Personality of the Year at the annual African Bloggers Awards sponsored by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Kasope Ladipo-Ajai, a 29-year-old entrepreneur and co-founder of OmoAlata, a Nigerian brand that packages local Nigerian peppers and spices. She was the winner of the 2015 She Leads Africa Pitch Competition and was named on the 2016 Forbes List of 30 Promising Young Entrepreneurs in Africa.
Olatorera Oniru, a 28-year-old fashion designer and founder of Dressmeoutlet.com, a Nigerian online store of fashion products, health and beauty products. She is a fellow of the Tony Elumelu Foundation and was named on the 2016 Forbes List of 30 Promising Young Entrepreneurs in Africa.
These are some of the youths under 35 who have navigated their way through the tough waters of the Nigerian economy and made a name for themselves in the local and international community. I could go on all day with more examples, however, to the end of stating empathically to Mr. President that Nigerian youths are in no way lazy, nor do we deserve to be labeled as such.
My generation has to live everyday of our lives paying for the mistakes of our elders and so far we have done well for ourselves. What we need at the moment is some encouragement from our government and not to be chastised in such a way and on such a global platform. An adage in Yoruba says “if you can’t solve my problem; don’t add to it. Just leave me as you meet me.”