Esther Okoi|25 July 2018
Concerned about the spate of youth employment and how to reduce it to the bearest minimum, the Cross River State Commissioner for Youth and Sports Development, Comrade Asu Okang has reiterated that it will no longer business as usual while mediocrity in adhering to the Local Content Law is allowed to linger on the part of cooperate organizations.
Speaking while addressing the executives of the Niger Delta Youth Development Foundation (NDYDF), Cross River State Chapter, Comrade Okang stated that enough time had been given to the Corporate Organizations to engage young Cross Riverians but without positive reply, hence the need for engagement from the part of the government, to remind them of the seriousness to press home demands to the adherence of the Local Content Law and performing their Corporate Social Responsibility.
According to him, these organizations are needed to grow the economy of the State and as such the engagement would be succinct. He informed that the State Government on its part has developed a Multi-Sectoral Youth Development Plan that sought address the issue of Youth unemployment from a multi facetted view point and engage over 15,000 youths in different areas of life’s endeavour, adding that this is one way of curbing youth restiveness and other social vices.
Comrade Okang charged the NDYDF and other youth bodies to use their offices to sensitize youths across the State to shun violence and take advantage of the Youth friendly policies of Governor Ben Ayade to better their lives and develop the State, maintaining that the recent engagement of 5,000 youths under the YESSO intervention programme in conjunction with the Cross River State Government is geared towards changing the lots of the youths in the State.
Speaking earlier, the President, Niger Delta Youth Development Foundation, Cross River State Chapter, Comrade Eteng Eteng commended the State Government through the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development for its meaningful inclusion and engagement of Youths across the State, pointing out that the NDYDF seeks to collaborate with the Ministry to seek better ways in engaging the youths intensely to take them off the street and social vices by extension.
Comrade Eteng hinted that the Niger Delta Region has grown beyond youths picking up arm to youths being gainfully involved in the polity and well being of their respective States, inferring that communal clashes and other forms of violence still existing in communities are driven by hate speeches, calling for the government to put modalities on ground to ensure that these clashes are dealt with permanently while also engaging cooperate organization operating in the State through collaboration with the Ministry to demand the dues of Youths as regards Corporate Social Responsibility, to keep these Youths gainfully engaged in their various communities.
Okoi writes from Calabar
