Bawa-Allah Calls For Renewed Orientation By LG, LCDAs To Tackle Youth Restiveness

By _ Babatunde Kaka

• Bawa-Allah noted that measures have been put in place to provide adequate support to the teeming youths and enable them participate fully in the recruitment exercises.

Increasing re-orientation programmes by Local Government Councils targeted at ensuring massive youth participation in government recruitment exercises in Nigeria, has been identified as a major panacea capable of curbing the prevalent youth restiveness in the nation.

The Federal Commissioner representing Lagos State at the Federal Character Commission, Abuja, Hon. Abdul Wasiu Kayode Bawa-Allah disclosed this while addressing the newly elected Chairmen of Local Government Councils and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) during a retreat held in Lagos.

Bawa-Allah explained that the councils remain key stakeholders with a role to play in addressing unrest and agitation if necessary. He also noted that measures have been put in place to provide adequate support to the teeming youths and enable them participate fully in the recruitment exercises.

He said, “We, however, have observed that the participation and inclusion of our Indigenes in the general employment opportunity into the military and paramilitary; health care and some educational institutions, is far below par.”

Decisions about the security and distribution of this nation’s resources will be taken by those employed into these agencies, and where we are not adequately represented owing to our lapses, cries of marginalization, complaints about being sidestepped, and a growing sense of non-inclusion, will be a fait accompli.”

Explaining the core mandates of the Federal Character Commission at ensuring a proportionate appointment system, promotion of vacancies at directorate levels on the basis of merit, and the provision of socio-economic amenities, infrastructural facilities at all levels of government nationwide, the commissioner added that the commission has improved on its advocacy activities to the state- based higher echelon and key policy making institutions.

“We can therefore, at this juncture, conclude that it is unarguably evident in the light of the exposition today, that Federal Character is genuinely poised to quell agitations at all levels. This, it will continue to do by creating a balance in the existing imbalances, and institutionalizing sustainable fairness, equity and justice in the sharing of posts, socio-economic amenities and infrastructural facilities”, the commissioner submitted.

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Bawa-Allah also noted that the Commission was empowered to carry out staff auditing at any level of government in order to check or advise on the correction of the imbalances that may exist, while re-iterating the fact that the activities of some erring MDAs were being monitored to correct some anomalies.

He called for the unalloyed support of the council chairmen to enable qualified indigenes benefit from the few employment opportunities in these economically challenging times, adding that the State has since been contributing to the nation’s wealth in no small measure through its rich and diverse socio-economic activities.