Nigeria: what the future holds for the younger generations? -By Kasim Isa Muhammad

To say Nigeria has failed is an understatement. Nobody can predict what the future holds for the younger generations and profiteers alike. With the recent abductions of school children, kidnapping on the major highways, an increase of tuition fees by the Kaduna government, showing that Nigeria is on the brink of collapse if care is not taken. Nevertheless, the most perturbing question running on my mind and fellow, ordinary Nigerians is who will bring succor at this time of unprecedented crises?

We all know that Nigeria got its independence sixty years ago and it will clock sixty-one in few months to come, but unfortunately, the country lacks direction. Innocent citizens are being killed daily, graduates roaming streets looking for jobs; while senior politicians are buying luxury cars, taking their children abroad to study, while the children of the poor are left in dilapidated classrooms. With this, no one can predict the future of Nigeria as a nation.

With all the above-mentioned problems militating against the country seeming not enough, the Kaduna state governor Nasiru El-rufai came up with the idea of increasing tuition fees, despite his state facing serious challenges of insecurity. Unfortunately, instead of the governor providing a lasting solution to the problems bedeviling the state, he chose to add salt to the current problem people of Kaduna are wallowing in. I often ask myself this question; do the children of the poor have a future in this country? Yes, the answer to the question is visible to the blind and audible to the deaf because when you fail to educate the children of the poor that voted you into office, you will never know peace, it’s high time the governor thought and have a rethought.

Nonetheless, the recent statistics establish that 25 million graduates are unemployed. This shows that the future generations will not invest in education, because when a country fails to employ the gargantuan population of its graduates, they will only engage in nefarious activities; such as gangsterism, kidnapping, banditry, militancy, and all heinous activities, we need to wake up from our deep slumber in providing job opportunities to our youths.

It’s pertinent to note that statistics also establishes that 900 schools were destroyed in Nigeria recently, more especially in the northwestern part of the country, but unfortunately, many Nigerians don’t find this worthy to talk on, rather talking on the Twitter ban, even though we all know how some unpatriotic Nigerians are using the app to spread hatred, disunity, unsubstantiated stories that will bring about conflict in the country.

Have we forgotten the slogan saying children are the leaders of tomorrow?

Yes, there is a need to ask this question when the so-called leaders of tomorrow stay at home because their parents cannot afford their tuition fees, are they even leaders of tomorrow when their leaders fail to protect their lives and properties?

By looking at the current situation and Nigeria’s stalking on social and economic impacts, the youths have lesser opportunity to get involved in governmental issues.

In some developed countries, technology has been playing a key role in successful programs, advancing tech power, and engaging youths in learning something to generate a source of income. There are so many obstacles in Nigerian technological development and a very big challenge for the youths. The government invests insufficient funds in technological methods which seem to be a modern pillar of providing a massive number of job opportunities.

However, the youths probably graduate from various universities, come out with outdated skills, and have no chance of getting a job. The government needs to introduce a program in the universities for a change of method in teaching, entrepreneurship, and ways to inspire the youths.

Also, international investments are advised to enlarge ways of poverty alleviation from millions of youths living without any hope here in Nigeria. Building up companies and carrying out regular works will help to make a way out of these obstacles.

Youths can also be involved in politics, for there’s so much hope there and it can remove the pain of Nigerians. The vibrant minds have the zeal to change many things here in Nigeria but some uncertain beliefs came to destroy the future of youths into politics.

When the government provides job opportunities and tackles the issues of insecurity the future generations will write the name of our leaders in a golden slate of history.

Now, in Nigeria the only thing we need is to collectively work together, our problems are beyond political affiliations, ethnicity, religion, and sectionalism, yet we need to take a deep breath and ask ourselves what the future will hold for the younger generation.

Kasim Isa Muhammad is a 200 level student department of Mass Communication University of Maiduguri