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Olawande advises Nigerian Youth to Shelve Protest

Published

2 months ago

July 26, 2024

Joel Ajayi

The Minister of State for youth development Ayodele Olawande has called on the Nigerian youth to shelve the planned nationwide protest scheduled to hold in August.
The Minister gave this admonition on Thursday in his office in Abuja.

According to Olawande “there are many ways we can register our displeasure as youth to the government, but a protest that has the potential to snowball into destruction is not an option. We have our whole future ahead of us. Hence, anything that hurts Nigeria affects us more than anyone else”.

While reiterating that the major interventions of the Federal Ministry of Youth have been guided mostly by the yearnings and agitations of the youth,he highlighted various youth-focused initiatives of the Federal government which he said include ,”Young and Secure” initiative ,a campaign aimed at ensuring that the issue which led to the 2020 #EndSars protest do not re-occur; the “Youth Desk” which offers a platform for young Nigerians to table their complaints and concerns in a Coordinated manner.

The Minister stated “Personally, I believe we need to work to bring the government Closer to the Youth, to make it easier for the Youth to feel and experience the the impact of government. This is the reason I have priotized an apolitical engagement, by visiting more than 13 States so far”

Also, “I am aware that a major challenge for our generation is unemployment, which is worsened by the kind of Mismatch that exists between the skills that Majority of us possessed and those that employers in today’s labour market required. Hence, we initiated the Nigerian Youth Academy (NIYA) to up skill the youth and connect them to employers.

“For the Youth who have opted for self employment, the government has made preparations to fully support their aspirations through the Nigerian Youth Investment fund (NYIF). Also, through the grants and Cash transfers, President Tinubu has Provided #50 billion as nano-grants of#50,000 each to 1,300 small businesses in all the 774 local government areas.

“There is also the Consumer Credit Scheme initiated by the President Tinubu to enable Nigerians have access to good and Services, with Payment Spread over time in order to make life easier for all and sundry.

“In the Political Sphere, the President has Opened Up the Political Space like never before, appointing arguably the Largest number of Young People to top Positions in government, while also delivering local governments autonomy to democratise political participation at the grassroot level. Yet, these are Only some of the over 34 key interventions the president has made so far”, the minister recounted.

While Stating that the President is wholly concerned about how to reduce out -of- Pocket expenses for low income families.The minister said the recently approved Student loan and the Consumer Credit Scheme are Some of the key interventions in this regards.
“All the initiatives we are working on may not have addressed all the problems, I am confident that President Tinubu would continue to expand Opportunities for the Youth and Other Categories of Nigerians to thrive”.

“I urge my fellow Youth to be patient and utilise all channels of engaging with the government to table their demands that are yet to be met. The doors to my office are opened at all times to receive your complaints, grievances, and suggestions. Protest which in the long run will muddle up the issues we are fighting for would not advance our cause ” the minister Pleaded.

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Nigeria Will Take Good Shape In No Distant Time- Olawande

Published

5 hours ago

September 16, 2024

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The Minister of State for Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande has urged the citizens of the country to be patient with the Administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in transforming the lives of its citizens through various policies and programs of the federal government.

The Minister made this submission while delivering his speech at the Joint Union Negotiating Council’s week of the Federal Ministry of Youth Development branch. This is the first edition since both Ministries of Youth and Sports had been damaged. The JUNC week which was held at Atiku Hall, Office of Head of Civil Service of the Federation in Abuja had its theme: “The working people in a volatile, uncertain, and complex economy”

In the words of the Honourable Minister: “I urge you to be patient with this administration. In no distant time, the country will take good shape and the lives of its citizens will be transformed”.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not a pauper, he is an acknowledged epitome of wealth, and so it cannot be said of him that he desires to loot the treasury of Nigeria. He has seen money and as a result of this, he is not interested in looting the nation’s treasury”, Olawande explained.

He emphasized that “leadership is all about being committed to serve. If you are a Minister now, tomorrow you will be addressed as a former Minister, likewise a Director because there is no permanent position but the impact that you made while in that office will speak after you”, the Minister reiterated.

Olawande expressed his gratitude to the workers of the Ministry for being supportive of the government policies and programs. He promised that the welfare of the staff would not be compromised, adding that workers deserve remuneration for being hardworking.

Earlier in his address, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mr. Olubunmi Olusanya admonished the staff of the Ministry to put in their best as “Performance Management System” which replaces APER is the criteria to be used for promotion effective next year. This, according to him is because the Performance Management System (PMS) records the best efforts and input of each staff which will in turn be used to grade such staff.

Olusanya who disclosed that the welfare of the staff is his priority as workers deserve the best for the services rendered. He opined that “the hungry man is angry and as a worker, if you are not treated fairly and properly, it is impossible to get the best out of you. As a result, all staff will be treated properly as motivation to propel the best in you”, he concluded.

The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Esther Didi Walson-Jack, OON, MNI, in her address, informed that the activity to reinvigorate the Civil Service in a bid to ensure that Civil Servants carry out their duties with much diligence to have efficient and incorruptible civil service is currently on course. She advised workers to wake up and be committed to the service of the nation.

In his closing remarks, Mr. Jerry Akume, the General Secretary of the Union expressed his delight in celebrating this year’s edition of the Union week, while highlighting the achievements of the union so far. These include:

Upward review of staff welfare, prompt payment of repatriation allowances, payment of first 28 days allowance, assistance to the sick, general training of staff, and sending forth/retirement package for retired staff.

He also appealed to the Management of the Ministry, saying that irrespective of the aforementioned achievements, a lot still needs to be done in such areas as procurement of staff buses, upward review of welfare payment for festive periods, consistent general staff training, and procurement of office and work materials.

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