Travails of a Nigerian youth – Ejike Anyaduba
It is bad enough to imagine a Nigeria without youths, butworse to have them without a future. Each time I reflect on this development Iam assailed by an unpleasant feeling – some form of vicarious pain. More thanthat, I sense an ominous threat to the peace of the society if nothing urgentis done to avert the seething rage.
At a reasoned estimate, an average Nigerian youth is out ofhumour with his environment. He sees it as stifling his drive and resents it.He struggles through school which he sometimes spends longer time than he shouldbecause of Government/Labour uneasy relationship.
He survives the difficultpatch and graduates into the labour market with little chance of securing a job.He searches diligently, but secures none. He roams the street in hope that fortunemay favour him singularly. But he soon realizes there is no fortune as theNigerian factor dutifully puts him at the wrong side of the employable.
Eager to succeed, he decidesto channel his energy into personal enterprise. He starts a small scalebusiness after talking with the banks. A year or two into the business,unstable policies, power outage, insecurity etc conspire and lay waste hiseffort. In time, he falls behind inrepaying his loan, goes belly up and closes shop. He trudges on the street,frustrated.
He cops a sad image as he reflects on his situation. “A man”, heremembers Thomas Carlyle, Scottish philosopher and essayist saying, “willing towork, and unable to find work, is perhaps the saddest sight that fortune’sinequality exhibits under the sun”.
He rues his state as anger wells up in him. Fortune has notoffered him as much opportunity as it did the generation before his. Opportunitiesthat saw youths of the time ascend the height of their chosen careers in goodtime. He does not need to dig deep into history to know that Chief Anthony Enahoroedited the Southern Nigerian Defender,one of the chains of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe’s newspapers at the age of 21, makinghim the youngest in Nigeria. Or that most Nigerian leaders of the time, bothcivilian and military, led the country in their youth. Gowon, Ojukwu, and otherswere quite young when leadership was thrust upon them.
Succession was smooth andencouraged to enthrone excellence and not mediocrity. There was no recycling ofleaders. People retired when they should and made space available for followersto occupy. Nobody held fast to any position at the detriment of societalcohesion and progress. Government and allied institutions were run smoothly andnot as a cult where succession has become by secret alliances. Neither was it runas a traditional institution where succession was by right of primogeniture.Things were run relatively fairly, and consideration was given to the otherman. Gerontocracy and cronyism were hardly in service.
People graduated toselect jobs. Access to leadership positions was open. Opportunities were neveran exclusive preserve of a tiny clique. Jobs were available as wereopportunities to lead. Elders were less competitive and willing to concedespace to the youths. Usurping of positions was few and far between. Mentorshipwas encouraged as a way of sustaining viable leadership as well asfollowership. It was easy for people to make impact in the society early.
Sadly, everything has changed. Things have taken a tumble forthe worse. The Nigerian youth is in deep struggle. He has no job and he has no opportunities.The state neither provides nor points with justice to any youth empowerment planfor self sustenance. She appears to want to carry on without her youth and thefuture of the country.
No time in the history of Nigeria was the story of her youth– her future — told with so much uncertainty. No job for those willing towork. No access to others lucky enough to be in employment to rise. No empowermentfor those who practice some craft. Often money mapped out for skill acquisitionends up in wrong hands.
Those who should be inretirement stay in service on account of forged documents while those already inretirement are not tired and still interfere with activities inside the system.Quite often placement becomes very difficult because those who led Nigerian inthe second republic are still leading her. How, for example, does Nigeria thinkit right to engage the services of some of her current ministers over and aboveher youth with same qualification? Whatever experience a retiree (most of whoare battling senility) is bringing to the table is vitiated by the troublecaused by Alzheimer’s disease. It may be argued that engaging the youth doesnot provide all the answers to our problem as some of them in leadershippositions have not acquitted themselves. This may be true, but pitted againstthose who have excelled in leadership, politics, economy, sports etc theposition pales in comparison. There are youths who have pursued theirassignment with great commitment and vision.
It serves no purpose to recycle leaders in a country that hasa surfeit of youthful talents. Leadership requires both mental and physicalstrength neither of which should be played down. A country desirous of growthcannot sacrifice her youths for any reason. No matter what promise recycling ofold leaders holds, the game does not worth the candle. The world is moving at avery fast pace perhaps too fast for gerontocracy to catch up. The youths shouldbe encouraged to lead while the elders sit back and offer advice. Nigeriacannot afford otherwise. The consequences will be costly.
Ejike Anyaduba
Abatete
