By Protus Nathan Uzorma (The Reformer and Mayor of Imo Youths).
THE POSITION OF IMO YOUTHS.
I write this today to my party and other political stakeholders because I am involved. I write because I am the Mayor of Imo youths. I write again because I truly believe in effective leadership. However, effective leadership can be defined as that kind of leadership that is fruitful, productive, commendable, and praise worthy. It is a leadership style that is anchored on fairness, tact, equity and justice. An effective leader is a celebrated leader, and a celebrated leader is a leader that left indelible footprints on the sands of time. By his work, he serves as reference point, whenever issues that border on his vocation are discussed.
He is a blessing to his generation. In the contrary, therefore, ineffective leadership is the opposite of the former. It is a leadership style that is anchored on selfishness and as a result is condemnable. Players of this style of leadership weren’t celebrated; they were only remembered as failed agents of their time, whose appellation could stir a bad leader to have a rethink. They were a curse to their generation.
My attention of has been drawn to the uncalled, ignominious and unwarranted acts being meted upon our youth leaders by some respected stakeholders of the party in the state. One wonders what caliber of leaders and political god-fathers we have today that only champion their personal interest without an iota of regards to others. It is high time our political fathers come to the realization that for leadership to be effective and praise-worthy, all variable factors and revolving forces must be considered and clearly put into play for the desired result to be achieved.
Leadership today is an all encompassing task that cuts across age, gender, colour, ethnicity etc. Therefore, no particular class of people owns an exclusive right to holding such office permanently. The youths should be given their rightful place in the scheme of things in every sector of our economy and society at large. A situation where some youth leaders were mal-handled at the state secretariat of the party by security operatives at the express instruction of a party chieftain without any cogent reason is unmitigatedly galling. May I seize this opportunity, on behalf of Imo-Youths and leaders functioning under the platform of Peoples Democratic Party to sound a note of warning to person(s) involved, that the youth of Imo state will no longer tolerate such unwholesome and ignoble show of shame henceforth. We will no longer fold our arms and watch our people being used as tools in the actualization of selfish interest of some unscrupulous politicians. The political arsenals of any party in this part of the world (Africa) cannot be optimally propelled and satisfactorily executed without the engagement of the youths, who act as catalyst in the execution and realization of such noble goals.
The agitation we are making today through this medium is that there should be a place for the youth in the administrative process of governance in our country today, be it in the state or federal level. Any political party that does not have a clear-cut programme for the youth, who command the largest percentage of our voting public, will certainly find it difficult to thrive in an atmosphere enveloped in rancor and chaos arising from the total neglect of the yearnings of the youths.
Gone are the days when the youths are only used as thugs and ballot snatchers in the hands of selfish politicians who only use and dump them when elected into office. The hour has come for the youths to take the bull by the horn. I write as the MAYOR OF IMO YOUTHS.
We have a lot of competent young men and women In our society who idle away in different location across the length and breadth of the country seeking for a place to fix themselves, while tired brains who are ripe for retirement are allowed to continually occupy sensitive positions, who on compulsory retirement scheme a way out for their wards to replace them. The average Nigerian youth who has no godfather in the higher echelon of life now resigns to fate in his or her bid to secure a job. Our society has become one where mediocrity overruns merit.
In our battle for the emancipation of the ordinary Nigerian youth, there must be a paradigm shift from the old method to a new way of life, if not, then, there is an inevitable invitation for anarchy. The youth of this state and the nation in general has been over marginalized since the inception of our political cum democratic era. The usual method of recruiting the boys only when needed for electioneering jobs and afterwards dumped, will gradually go into the waste paper basket of history, for a revolution is in the offing. Our political fathers have always come up with the word “INEXPERIENCE” to shove aside the youth. My question is, how does experience come into play in a man’s life? That inexperience boy today probably will become the most experienced godfather tomorrow.
The scary word “INEXPERIENCE” which is always put forward by our political fathers will no longer have a biting tooth and as a result will never derail our struggle for recognition and emancipation. Let it be clear to all our political gladiators that it will no longer be business as usual. Let me also at this juncture make it abundantly clear to all political fathers parading themselves as alphas and omegas in the political corridor of our nation that the perennial exploitation of our youths is a time bomb waiting for detonation. It also symbolizes the case of a man sitting on the keg of a gun powder. At the risk of repeating myself, come 2015 any administration that will not use the youth to form 50% of its executive council will have the youths of the state to contend with. The time has come for this age long anomalies to be addressed.
Qualified, credible and exemplary young men and women from no aristocratic descent, should be allowed to run for elective positions both in the state and federal levels and be adequately supported to win same. The era of having a political class peopled by people who alone determines what happens in a particular state or nation will sooner or later be a forgotten experience. The era of having a political dynasty from which political appointments will always come from, anytime any day it is needed, will soon go down into the annals of political history. The era where some political godfathers sit in the comfort of their houses and anoint political sons and daughters for some elective positions against the overriding interest of the general public will gradually be a thing of the past, for God alone gives power and authority to whomsoever he wishes and not man. A situation where some political godfathers will convene a political meeting without deeming it necessary to invite the youth representatives is absolutely unwholesome; this again is a serious invitation to chaos. The time has come for the youths, the average man and woman in the street to say “NO” to the over-marginalization of the ‘haves over the have-nots’.
It is therefore on this note that the youths wish to use this medium to remind our political fathers that the time has come for the anomalies meted on the youths over the years to be addressed. The youths who form the bedrock of every nation and who stir the political mechanism of every political party in ensuring victory in every election, have risen to say enough is enough. No political party or leader will continually be allowed to toy with our future. The battle we wage is for posterity. The journey ahead is stiff but with God on our side we will excel. May the God of the leader and the led bless our noble course.