2019: Buhari will know that we are not lazy — YOWICAN President

The Youth wing of the Christian Association of Nigeria (YOWICAN), has said the Nigerian youths come 2019 will use their permanent voters card PVC to vote President Muhammadu Buhari out of office aimed at demonstrating to Mr President that youths in Nigeria are not lazy.

YOWICAN stated this on Sunday while reacting to the comment credited to President Buhari in London during a panel appearance with world leaders at the Commonwealth Business Forum held last week.

Buhari was quoted to have said “more than 60 percent of the country’s population is below 30, a lot of them haven’t been to school and they are claiming that Nigeria is an oil producing country, therefore, they should sit and do nothing, and get housing, healthcare, education free”.

However, CAN through it’s youth President, Daniel David Kadzai, expressed dissatisfaction over Mr Buhari’s comments, saying that the Nigerian youths contributed over 80 percent of the President’s victory at the 2015 general elections.

Kadzai said youths stood under the sun at the 2015 polls to ensure the President’s victory, even though the Federal Government led All Progressives Congress (APC), has reworded the gesture by increasing the number of unemployed youths through it’s harsh economic policy.

Kadzai said companies drawn to Nigeria by the prospect of a population bigger than Germany and Turkey’s combined are retreating; those staying have publicly criticized the president, a military strongman in the 1980s who came back to power via an election; and foreign investors are pulling their money out.

“The corporate tribulations that began with a slide in oil prices and accelerated after the imposition of capital controls are also entangled in a global emerging-market slump. In propping up the naira in a futile bid to contain inflation, officials have jacked up pressure on an economy running out of cash, deepening a black market in currency trading and causing shortages of imported goods from fuel to milk.

“This is what we have become since Buhari took over power and yet he goes about insulting Nigerian youths.

“Our youths are charting new frontiers; creating a huge tech industry on their own. Their entrepreneurial spirit, work ethics and creative abilities are things of pride and should be applauded, encouraged and nurtured.”

Kadzai said when the Chief Executive of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, visited Nigeria, he voiced out his impression of the country’s young developers and entrepreneurs, saying “The energy here is amazing and I’m excited to learn as much as I can.”

Also in July 2017 when the Chief Executive Officer, Google, Sundar Pichai, visited the country, he described the youths as “creative, smart and driven to succeed,” and noted that there was an urgent need to create opportunities for them, Kadzai said.

The YOWICAN President also challenged Buhari to tell Nigerians what he achieved in his life on personal merit, pointing out that Buhari joined military on quota system and become president on zoning formula, not on his merit, adding that “his host will be amazed by such comments from the Nigerian President, because they know the capacity of our youths in education and other disciplines.

“We are patiently waiting for the five million jobs President Buhari promised Nigerian youths during his 2015 campaign and we will not be distracted by his UK’s outburst, Kadzai said.