Self Development as Panacea For Youth Leadership, by Hashim Suleiman
Apparently, the cry and wish for youth to take over leadership has become a myth and has become an uphill task in our clime.
However, many have not realized such reality and this has continued to create lots of difficulties for the youth to understand how to navigate the Nigerian system and make a living out of it.
Honestly, some of us have utilized opportunities that came our way and we have learnt almost perfectly and realistically how you can aspire in the so much misunderstood Nigerian system.
I am not in any way saying people are not ready to try out anything or even dream about certain things related to ideality but my message today is borne out of so many practicable attempts which have yielded permanent answers to this debacle around expectations.
Top of such answers is the fact that no youth wants to give, they just want to take.
And I keep asking if such happens or has ever happened anywhere in the world because I know how Nigerian youths love basking in the euphoria of abroad. I’m personally very less excited about anything abroad, because I recognize I’m African and I understand the place of Africa in the world and I have appropriated my expectations around such realities.
I appreciate the beautiful things certain people do and I always wish to work hard to make enough money to afford them but attempting to superimpose one narrative over another is not my thing and I have been in peace ever after.
So what has happened over a long period of time of no mentoring and sharing of handouts is the production of very lazy minds who are very less ready to learn a thing nor even make attempts at imbibing them. Economy has become what it is now and all heavens want to be let loose. I know for a fact that so many young people who have chosen to develop capacity over time are doing so well and not minding who politically becomes this or that. I was discussing with a colleague within the week and he was complaining about how he wished certain things could get done, I agreed also that they should get done but the biggest question was the availability of the capable hands with capacity and sharp deciphering IQ, we lastly both concurred there were very less of them and my understanding of such makes it preferable for me to bulldoze my way into getting things done.
Politically and leadership speaking, the elites have long succeeded in cornering the resources to themselves and their lackeys plus those who have developed capacity and critical skills they can’t do without. All others have become increasingly on their own over the years. They have equally succeeded in depriving the youths of mentorship and critical education and awareness including deep rooted hatred that were capable of perpetually shutting the youth out from ever succeeding in any dream or desire for leadership takeover. I can assure you that I know the majority of people that would come across this write up may not be patient enough to read it to the end because reading and search for knowledge have become increasingly low owing to the things I’ve enumerated above. Guess what, I’ve discussed with lots of youths who are waiting for the ways of before to come back someday but I always shock them to say those days of free money and handouts was gradually coming to an end for good. The next set of people whom I presume could return as next Nigeria’s president are people who detest rewarding unworthy people, they have even demonstrated that from their various homes regarding how they ensure their kids go through the ropes in terms of their aspirations e.g Atiku Abubakar.
What we have now ended up with is a youth population that is very less receptive to themselves and superior ideas. Everyone feel they know enough and do not require any more. Young people nowadays only listen in conversations for the purpose of providing an answer as against understanding the topic for informed responses. Further to that are youths who are busy and wanting free and quick money at all cost, such has degraded morals and left the society in some sort of a chaotic situation and the social media laced with mysterious and unbelievable stories. No vision, no purpose, no intents. There’s so much deficit in the availability of leaders for tomorrow and even those who have been opportune lack depth in character.
Clearly from the above, there’s no iota of hope left for the youth of Nigeria in terms of an integration and understanding of the Nigeria system. The worst to poverty is hopelessness and that’s the state that majority of Nigerian youths are in. The only solution to this gigantic and scary problem is attempts to get the youths to understand the need to develop critical skills which could in turn provide some resource that is needed to aspire including leadership positions where there would be expectation of a change from the way things have been done in the past.
Such narratives provide us opportunity to highlight examples like Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, the DG of NITDA who has long developed capacity that catapulted him to such executive position and the best of it is his effort at vindicating what youth with sound mind and skill can bring to the table.
God grant us wisdom to direct ourselves appropriately, Amen.
Hashim Suleiman
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