Few hours after the wanton destruction of public and private properties in Calabar by thousands of young men who had hijacked the #EndSARS peaceful protest, the former Cross River governor, Mr Donald Duke, has said instead of casting aspersions, Nigeria should seek forgiveness from its youths who, he said, have been terribly bruised.
Duke who was a former presidential candidate during 2019 general elections, told Journalists, Sunday, that for the nation to move forward, the fatal wounds inflicted on Nigerian youth over the years should be consciously made to heal.
While stressing that Nigerian youths were now feeling cheated by reason of where the leaders have placed them, he said the older generation who are still at the helms of the country’s affairs needs the forgiveness of the youths, and that the trust deficit must be bridged so as to regain their confidence.
He said, “The youths have been badly bruised and their scars must be well taken care of. The youths are telling us something not in words but in actions, they are speaking in their own manner because people speak differently, some speak in parables too.
“The youths have to forgive us first because we are the ones who are managing their resources and they are telling us that our management is poor; they cannot be silenced, they must be heard .
“If there is right to life then there is right to livelihood, giving them a job or engaging them is not a privilege but a right .There is a trust deficit between the people especially the youths, and the government. Our democracy is 21 years already, we can’t wait to be fools at 40.”
According to him, Nigeria was in a situation where the rich cannot sleep because the poor cannot eat.
He said, “We have always warned that Nigeria was seating on a gun powder, from this moment we must be very sincere with the people. We must mean what we say and say what we mean .The youths feel cheated because the older generation had better opportunities at their age.
“The youths need to know that we are listening to them ,the youths should be able to hold us accountable .The engagement of the youth is pivotal. The huge percentage of our youths are idle, infact over 80 percent of them, because when you see someone carting away used toilet seat, then there is a big problem.
“Television sets can be replaced, cars can be replaced but a bruised mind is very dangerous to handle. Young people are beginning to ask questions and if the youths feel your statements are empty, they will not take you serious anymore.
“If they were gainfully employed or engaged, they will not come out in their large numbers. We must create jobs, we must find ways for them to earn money.
“The government must be ingenious in finding solutions to these problems. Let’s assure our teeming youths that they are not alone. If China can create jobs for a billions people, then Nigeria can also do it .
“What we experienced in Cross River was a deep seated resentment from the people who feel a certain state of hopelessness.”
