…From Dele Ogunyemi, Ibadan…
Worried by the raging mass unemployment in Nigeria, the Progressive Governors Forum, led by Imo State Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, besieged Ibadan, Oyo State capital, on Monday, where they resolved to task economic experts across the country to assist in the formulation of policies that would stimulate the private sector in bringing about economic activities that would create quality jobs for the teeming young graduates in the nation.
Rising from the 1st Progressive Governance Lecture Series, held at the Civic Centre, Ibadan, the Governors declared pointedly that “the current unemployment situation in Nigeria is unacceptable, and is a danger to the social, economic and political stability of the country.”
“We can no longer remain insensitive to issues around unemployment and the crises of governance in Nigeria,” the Progressive Governors Forum stated in a communique issued at the end of the get-together which lasted five hours.
In attendance at the event were the host Governor, Senator Isiaq Abiola Ajimobi (Oyo); Owelle Rochas Okorocha (Imo); Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers); Murtala Nyako (Adamawa); Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun); Rabiu Musa Kwakwanso (Kano); and Dr. Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti State). The Governors of Sokoto, Osun, Kwara and Edo State were represented by either their Deputies or other top government functionaries.
The forum which was presided over by Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu represented by former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Bello Masari also featured Chief Bisi Akande, the interim national Chairman of APC; General Muhammadu Buhari; Pastor Tunde Bakare and a host of other leading members of the APC from the various states of the Federation.
In his welcome address, Governor Ajimobi of Oyo State informed the gathering that his administration had, “in the last 1000 days or thereabout, redefined the concept of governance, by bringing back the elusive peace that developmental scientists say is the precondition for development.”
While noting that his administration was already building a metropolis that is conducive for business and investments, Governor Ajimobi remarked that the resultant effect is that investors are already platforming on this mileage to bring their businesses to Oyo State.
“Gradually, we are becoming the preferred destination for investors and those who seek a conducive atmosphere to engage the brain and intellect at conferences,” he said.
Governor Okorocha maintained that the mission of the Progressive Governors Forum “is to bring the know-how gathered from our individual and collective experiences to bear as we seek to make Nigeria work again.”
The guest lecturer at the forum, Mr. Ayo Teriba, an economic consultant, spoke extensively on the topic “Nigeria’s High Growth – High Unemployment Paradox”, noted with concern that as Nigeria’s growth surged in the past one and a half decades, unemployment rate had increased threefold.
According to him, elected officials had been unable to translate growth to increased employment largely because they have left the task of fiscal and monetary policy management in the hands of appointees in who have inadvertently made policy choice that have weakened growth, constrained domestic demand and worsened the employment rate.
Teriba submitted that in order to make democratic governance a tool for delivering economic tangible and enduring economic benefits in the future, “Nigeria needs to make monthly employment data available before the end of each month, fix rail transportation, rethink fiscal policy, refocus monetary policy and ensure that elected officials accept responsibility for policy formulation and coordination.”