The Chairman of Nigerian Young Professionals Forum (NYPF) Moses Siloko Siasia has lamented that Nigeria is now a location for terrorist recruitment, stressing that we are sitting on a time bomb.
According to Siasia, owing to lack of proper engagement of our young innovative minds, international terrorist organisations are having free market recruiting this generation.
While addressing journalist in Abuja over the weekend, Siasia emphasised that Africa, particularly Nigeria is sufficiently blessed with young people who inspire, motivate and contribute to nation and global advancement, but have been relegated to the background.
He noted that as a country, we have lost our value system and if this situation remains unattended to it will escalate and jeopardise our coexistence.
Siasia while decrying the lack of employment for our teaming graduates, no skills-development centres, lack of social welfare and total absence of motivational leaders, stated that despite these challenges the nation has produced capable individuals who have projected the image of the country in good light.
“We have the likes of investment banker, Chinedu Echeruo who invented HopStop.com that Apple bought, the likes of Philip Emeagwali, the likes of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the likes of Chimamanda Adichie and several other Nigerians who are doing extraordinary things everywhere in the world. Nigeria is a great country, it’s a blessed country” he stated.
He expressed regret that the country has not done much in creating strong institutions, rather individuals, insisting that strong institutions will help bring about much the needed development and progress that the impoverished Nigerians yearn for.
While reiterating that leadership question has brought some level of challenges and concerns to Africa as a continent and Nigeria as a country, he stated that the issue of cyber crime has revealed the inability of African leaders to put in place necessary laws, procedures and principles to ensure that the menace is curbed and young people sensitized on the dangers involved in cyber crime.
He enumerated Konga, Jumia and other online shops as indications that a lot of Nigerians are engineering businesses, progress and development through the cyberspace.
He also decried the growing level of insecurity, restiveness and violence in the country.
Siasia stated that international terrorist organizations have seen Africa, Nigeria as hotbed for recruitment.
He therefore challenged leaders in Africa to put in place mechanisms that will ensure that young generations of the continent are empowered for useful ventures.
“It’s quite unfortunate that leaders in our continent only think about the next election and not the next generation. The young people are very important to societal advancement and serious attention must be paid to it” he warned.
He expressed regret that the issue of irregular migration has ruined the future of young people with huge idealism, professionalism and potentials.
Describing the Mediterranean sea as the biggest death spot in the world, he challenged leaders to do more in the area of human capital development to mitigate the urge by young people to travel to other parts of the world through illegal means in search for greener pastures.
He maintained that the creation of a robust sensitization programme for young people whom he described as trustees of prosperity is the way to go.
He expressed willingness to continue to use his platform to change the moral standard and thinking of young Africans and create opportunity to harness their mass energy and idealism for productive ventures.