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Tinubu’s Youth Initiatives Praised as Northern Stakeholders Rally Behind Sukubo’s Re-election

Published

4 weeks ago

September 9, 2025

Joel Ajayi
The North Central chapter of the National Youth Council of Nigeria has commended President Bola Tinubu’s administration for its strides in youth empowerment and engagement, while also urging him to do even more.

At the same time, NYCN North Central stakeholders also expressed their support for NYCN President, Amb. Sukubo Sara-Igbe Sukubo, to seek re-election in the upcoming polls.

At a meeting held in Abuja on Tuesday, North Central stakeholders, through a motion moved by NYCN Voluntary Youth Organisations member Yakubu Ibrahim and seconded by Hussain Mukhtar, pledged their support for Sukubo should he decide to contest the election.

In his remarks NYCN President, called on Nigerian youths to support leaders at all levels, irrespective of political affiliation.

Sukubo, whose intention to seek re-election as NYCN President in the forthcoming elective congress was backed by leaders of North Central, announced that the race is open to all candidates and assured that the process will be free, fair, and credible.

He further explained that his decision to run again is driven by the need to complete the task of repositioning the Council and freeing it from the control of selfish interests, a process he already initiated during his current tenure.

Sukubo stated, “As for me, as the President of the National Youth Council of Nigeria, on the Federal Government’s policies, programmes, youth engagement, and youth empowerment, I would rate it fine in the aspect of the students. They have given them the best.

“But for the youth, we are also expecting more than even the student community. So, if the youth intervention programme is not above the student community, it means it is not enough for us because in number we have more youths than students.

“The students are part of the youth, but not all youths are students. So, we expected that the President by now would allow the National Youth Council of Nigeria to be advocating and championing the blueprint for youth empowerment and youth development under his government.

“That is what I, as the NYCN President, wish the President can give the National Youth Council of Nigeria this assignment, this task as a vehicle for us youths to reach out to the 774 local governments, 36 states, and the entire country.”
Sukubo stressed that his bid for re-election is not driven by personal interest, but by a commitment to end the challenges and difficulties facing the NYCN.

The NYCN President stated, “After a series of calls from stakeholders, I have accepted the calling to contest and seek re-election as NYCN President. What it really means is, it’s not for my personal good, it’s not for self-centeredness, it’s not for self-reliance. It is in the interest of all and the Council at large.

“It’s because of the kind of trauma the Council has passed through for decades and we have been able to do our best to take it to fifty-five percent solved. So, when I am re-elected, I have to try my best to ensure that we get to ninety to one hundred percent problems solved, so that we can allow our younger ones, who will take over from us, to have peace to run the Council the way it should run.

“Because we expect our Nigerian youth to grow beyond the level we are at, we are still pushing to see how the dividends of democracy can also come to the younger generations.

“I believe that this NYCN election will be free, fair, and credible. It will not be a closed-door election. Doors are open to all contestants to contest for any offices of their choice. No one will be undone or intimidated.”

In his remarks, NYCN Vice President North Central, Mukhtar Akoshile also rate President Tinubu high in youths empowerment.
Akoshile said, “I will score President Bola Ahmed Tinubu very high. In terms of appointments, more youths have been appointed. Also, his policies and programmes have been pro-youth.

“Though the President has done well, we will still encourage him to do more to ensure that most Nigerian youths are empowered.”

Another North Central leader, former NYCN national officer and head of the Voluntary Youth Organisations, Prince Abubakar Abutu, described the meeting as both consultative and an eye-opener for everyone.

He said ,”This is a consultative meeting, and in the course of the meeting, North Central leaders are now well-informed about the achievements of President Sukubo. So, the meeting is also an eye-opener.

“We have listened to him. He is the only person that has travelled down to the zones, and we have listened to him.”

Those present at the meeting included NYCN leaders such as Ambassador Leader Agboola (former NYCN President), Ambassador Kasali Omotayo, Comrade Almustapha Abdullahi Asuku (former NYCN President), Barrister Abubakar Suleiman (NYCN Secretary-General), Comrade Zaka Nehemiah (Program Officer), Olawale Abdulrahman (Organizing Secretary), state chairmen, and others.

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Tin City Warms Up for President Tinubu as North Central Embraces Renewed Hope

Published

1 day ago

October 4, 2025

The Gleamer

By Sunday Dare

When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu berths on the plains and rolling hills that dominate the Jos landscape tomorrow, he will meet a people resourceful, friendly and resilient but weighed down by conflict, yet unbowed by adversity.

So, tommorrow, national attention turns to the Plateau- a locale laden with history and rich with potential. From the tin mines that gave the city of Jos its name, to the Irish potato, strawberry farms and beetroot plantations that dot its landscape, Jos remains a land of promise—truly the Home of Peace and Tourism.

Jos is also deeply woven into Nigeria’s political history. Plateau is home to towering figures such as Generals JD Gomwalk, Yakubu Gowon, John Shagaya, Joshua Dogoyaro, and Jerry Useni. Solomon Lar, Senator Ibrahim Mantu and numerous others also stand tall in the annals Plateau political history.

Jos was also the rallying ground of the famed Langtang Mafia—a group of influential military officers from Langtang in Plateau State who, at the height of their power, played a significant role in Nigeria’s political and military affairs.

The story of Jos is both exciting and excruciating. The city lost its innocence some two and a half decades ago, when the popular Terminus Market was reduced to rubble through acts of arson and looting.

Thus at the turn of the millennium by 2001, Jos—and by extension, Plateau—was thrown into a cycle of unending conflict. Ethnic tensions, clothed in religious garb, tore through the city and spread across the state, dragging Jos into an abyss of violence, almost of Kigali proportions. Peace gave way to war, and tourism jaunts became undertakings to the undertaker.

Yet Jos has never surrendered. Every time it is written off, it rises again—scarred, but resilient. With its multi-ethnic, multi-religious fabric, the Plateau continues to trudge on in pursuit of peace, development, and egalitarian ideals.

It was here, in Jos, that Nigeria’s democratic resurgence was birthed. The historic SDP convention, where late General Shehu Yar’Adua and Chief Moshood Abiola held sway, took place in this city. Jos gave political life to Abiola, our hero of democracy in 1992

Now, thirty three years later, another hero of democracy and of the June 12 struggle returns to the Plateau. President Tinubu’s return and visit to Plateau State is not just to honor the transition to glory of Nana Lydia Yilwatda, the mother of the APC National Chairman.

It is a visit that carries deeper meaning—one of empathy, solidarity, and renewed hope for a people who have endured decades of turmoil. It is a mission to preach peace, console the bereaved, bind wounds, and assure Plateau of its central place in the Nigerian project.

Mr President comes not just to mourn, but to reconnect. He comes to parley with the North Central, to commiserate with a people who have suffered, and to extend the hand of renewed hope. That Renewed Hope is laying a solid foundation as evidenced by Naira at N1,455 per dollar, rising Foreign Reserves at $43bn, Trade surplus heading for N25tr. Revenues up 411% and Inflation down to about 20 per cent. Over 600,000 students benefiting from NELFUND.

This visit is more than ceremonial. It is a journey into the very soul of a people who have known pain, yet remain resilient; a land scarred by conflict, yet still brimming with hope and promise. As the Tin City opens its arms, Jos will not just receive the President—it will receive a message of solidarity, healing, and renewal.

Tomorrow is about remembering the glorious past, confronting the present, and charting a path to a peaceful and prosperous Plateau within a united Nigeria. With President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, Jos once again stands at the intersection of history and destiny.

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