Acting President, Oluyemi Osinbajo has called on next generation of leaders to rise up to the challenge of leadership and build a country they would be proud of.
Osinbajo observe that contrary to the popular cliché that young people are the leaders of tomorrow, the time for them to showcase themselves as leaders is now, especially given the strength of their number in Nigeria’s population demographic.
Speaking at the 30th Biennial Conference of the Student Christian Movement (SCM) of Nigeria held at the Cathedral Church of the Good Shepherd, Enugu, he reminded the youths of the critical role they have to play in Nigeria’s renaissance, adding that youths have more critical responsibility of influencing the environment around them so as to engender viral attitudinal and economic change.
According to him, “We often make the mistake of thinking that nation building is the role of political leaders alone. Leaders in Nigeria, both elected and appointed are less than 5,000 and according to statistics, young people constitute 60 percent of our country’s population today and in about two years, this statistic will be 65 percent. This means that if there is a critical segment that already holds the mantle of leadership in Nigeria, it is our young people,” He said.
He also reminded the gathering that there is no excuse for any young person to continue thinking that he is waiting to become a leader, adding that “you are already leaders now.”
Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, governor of Enugu in his address called for a spiritual renaissance among young people in Nigeria as a certain means of imbibing the culture of love and enterprise capable of sparking off significant and measurable changes in the national social and economic landscape.
Eric Igbalo, President of the Student Christian Movement drew the attention of Osinbajo and Ugwuanyi to a new campaign launched by the Movement, which is said is targeted at national moral, political and economic renewal.
Tagged “Renew our World,” the campaign, done in partnership with an international organisation, TEARFUND, is designed to deliver Nigeria and the world from behavioural decadence and other forms of deviant behaviours.
KELECHI EWUZIE
