Danjuma blames nation’s worsening insecurity on youth unemployment

Former Defence Minister, General Theophilus Danjuma, yesterday, blamed the worsening insecurity in the country to the high rate of unemployment plaguing the nation.

Danjuma, who spoke at the second graduation ceremony of the ‘Youth Centre for Industrial Training,’ in Abeokuta, Ogun State, urged all levels of governments to take urgent steps to reverse the problem to avoid a catastrophe.

Theophilus Danjuma,

He lamented that it was regrettable that unemployment and insecurity had now become the foremost challenges confronting Nigeria.

According to him: “Is it not sad to see teeming youths roaming the streets  aimlessly on daily basis because they have no jobs?”

Danjuma donated N500million to the centre to meet its pressing demands as well as expand its facilities. and promised  to donate  N100million each year to support the project.

The multi-million naira Centre was set up by the retired Primate of the Anglican Church, Most Rev. Peter Akinola, under the “Peter Akinola Foundation, PAF, ”to train unemployed  youths to acquire skills in various vocations such as welding, electrical installation, tailoring, hairdressing, mechanic, vulcanising and masonry, among others, to be self-sustaining.

Also speaking, the Anglican Bishop of Asaba, DeltaState, Rev. Emeka  Mogekwu, who was a special guest, expressed concern about the unemployment situation in the country.

He said: “Unemployment is creating young men and women whose minds are poisoned against the society. This fact has become the greatest cause of insecurity, a situation demanding close attention to the issue of job creation.”

The Cleric regretted that the country’s institutions were not producing graduates to meet the manpower need of a developing country like Nigeria, noting that

“Our early education planners definitely envisioned nothing better than occupying European posts. The technical education policy which later evolved was meant to produce artisans and middle-level man-power hence
the establishment of Trade Centres, TechnicalColleges and Polytechnics.

“We have see cases of graduates of Islamic/Arabic studies being given employment in motor-assembly plants. Of course, in our present day Nigeria, many clever graduates have become emergency church founders and pastors electing themselves Bishops and General Overseers”.