Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has urged the political elite and those in public service to always work with young people to promote national growth, peace, and unity.
Sanwo-Olu gave this advice in Ikeja at a lecture called “Youths and the Sustenance of Democracy: Issues and Challenges.” The lecture was held to honour the 64th birthday of well-known activist, lawyer, and journalist Mr. Richard Akinnola.
For a better future, he urged Nigerian youngsters to actively participate in the democratic process. He also said that Nigerians should work together to develop and expand the nation’s democracy.
The governor noted that while political, ethnic, socioeconomic, and religious issues present many obstacles for the nation, rising to the occasion and overcoming these difficulties remained the true measure of leadership.
He contends that it is the duty of the state and of leaders to lessen the trend toward poverty and to open doors for people to escape its clutches.
”Education happens to be one; knowledge and skill acquisition is another one. Once you are able to liberate yourself from the shackles of poverty, then you have a free mind, heart and soul to desire and design things for yourself.
”There is a huge opportunity in this country. I want to urge all of you as builders of the nation and leaders of tomorrow not to lose hope. People that lose hope are people that are doomed.
”You cannot lose hope. Every day you wake up is hope for you and that hope should be the thing that should drive you. That hope should be the thing that should propel you.
”You cannot give up because giving up is not an option. In the political, economic and social inclusion space, you cannot give up. Giving up is giving out and that is not the spirit and energy of the youth.
”The future is here, you are the future. Take hold of it because you need to be in the room to take over. It is important for the youths to participate in the democratic process,” he said.
Sanwo-Olu exhorted the young people to utilise social media wisely, to use it as a tool for their own emancipation, and to use it to become better people in the future.
He urged the youth to take advantage of the numerous chances his administration had generated by claiming that his administration had engaged them through the THEMES developmental agenda for Greater Lagos.
He claimed that his administration would keep using technology to promote good governance.
The celebrant had stated that the involvement of adolescents in the general elections of 2023 would determine the outcome, thus the lecture’s topic.
According to Akinnola, Sanwo-humility, Olu’s willingness, and readiness to engage the students in spite of all odds made him an obvious candidate to serve as the program’s “Guest Lecturer.”
He praised the governor’s straightforwardness and for dealing with the young people during the #EndSARS demonstration in Lagos state in October 2020 with composure and maturity.
”Two years ago at the early stage of the EndSARS protest, I watched him (Sanwo-Olu) as he braved all odds to address the protesting youths with such calmness and levelheadedness even while some of the protesters were heckling him with insulting pejoratives.
”With such conduct, he won the hearts of many people,” Akinnola said.
