Sometime in 1988, I received a call from a good friend about an interesting investment opportunity with a few colleagues. After a series of meetings, it became very clear to me that we were about to embark on an audacious but incredibly special journey, and I was excited about the prospect of being a part of such a project. For almost 2 years, I worked alongside the likes of Akin Akintoye, Fola Adeola, Tayo Aderinokun (of blessed memory), Gbolly Osibodu, Bode Agusto and a few others on this investment project. As of 1988 when we began the journey, Fola was 34, Tayo was 33, Gbolly was 33, Bode was 33, Akin was 35 and I was 33. The objective: To own a BANK.
It was a bold objective considering our respective ages at the time, but certainly not an impossible task in our eyes. So we began to hold countless meetings at Fola’s residence in 1988, until we eventually shifted base to Tayo’s First Marina Trust office in Victoria Island. By late 1989, we were ready to put in our bank application at CBN, along with the required minimum capital. This effort was spearheaded by Fola and Tayo (the two brains behind the entire operation), and supported by about 40 persons (including myself), most of whom were in their early 30s and working for different organizations at the time.
The end product? We formed arguably one of the finest financial institutions Nigeria has ever seen- Guaranty Trust Bank (known as GT Bank today). The bank was licensed on the 1st of August,1990 and we commenced banking operations later that year. A group of young boys in their early/mid 30s OWNED a bank! We simply dreamt big, and turned this dream into reality.
I am taking the liberty to reflect on this chapter of my personal history against the backdrop of some of the criticism about the ages of some of President Muhammadu Buhari’s ministerial nominees. The argument being brandished about is that by nominating the likes of Chief Audu Ogbeh and Alhaji Ibrahim
Usman Jubril as ministers, our President is somehow blocking the destinies of younger Nigerians by preventing them from occupying such positions. People are quick to reference Yakubu Gowon and Murtala Mohammed as being relatively young when they ascended to power, and they argue that the same opportunities that young people had in the past are no longer available today. They also argue that around the same time we were forming GT Bank in the late eighties, there were also a number successful young entrepreneurs who distinguished themselves as well – Bola Tinubu (Treasurer at Mobil Oil), Gbade Ojora (ED Mobil Oil), Jim Ovia (Zenith Bank), Erastus Akingbola (Intercontinental), Dele Momodu (Publishing), Tony Elumelu (Standard Trust), Liyel Imoke (Politics), O’tega Emerhor (Standard Alliance Insurance), Aig Imoukhuede and Herbert Wigwe (Access) and Atedo Peterside (IBTC) are some of the noteworthy youngsters who made an impact in various fields in Nigeria at the time.
Perhaps, at play is the venting of some on-going frustrations by the younger generation today, but it is important to put things into proper perspective. Since pre-independence, the Nigerian youth have played a pivotal role in nation-building and economic development. The vast majority of the founding fathers that led the struggle for our independence were relatively young. Chief Obafemi Awolowo was 37, Akintola was 36, Ahmadu Bello was 36, Balewa was 34 and Enahoro was 27 when they led the struggle for independence after the death of Sir Herbert Macaulay.
Only Nnamdi Azikiwe was over 40 (he was about 42 at the time). Indeed, even the post-independence military hierarchy was fueled by the active participation of young persons in nation-building at critical periods of our nation’s history. The first coup in 1966 was led by a 29 year-old Nzeogwu and countered by the likes of T.Y. Danjuma, Shehu Musa Yar’adua and a few others, all in their 20s.
The subsequent coup brought a 32 year-old Yakubu Gowon into power. Many of the military administrators who governed the states under successive military governments (including our current president, Muhammadu Buhari) were in their 30s. Similarly, the major beneficiaries of Nigerian indigenization policies in the early 70s were young private sector entrepreneurs. The likes of Subomi Balogun, Oladele Olasore, Sam Asabia blazed the trails in banking at relatively young ages, while super civil servants such as Allison Ayida,
Phillips Asiodu, Ahmed Joda, Ime Ebong, Ibrahim Damcida etc held forth in public administration in their early 30s. This trend of young people playing active roles in nation building and economic activities continued well into my own generation in the 1980s and 90s, so it is not difficult to understand how we were able to muster the courage and determination to forming a bank at the time.
I have spent a lot of time mentoring, observing and interacting with young Nigerians. Today’s youth are no different from those of my generation about 30 years ago. They are faced with the same pressures, frustrations, uncertainties and life vicissitudes that we faced in our late twenties and early thirties. However, the marked difference is how young Nigerians apply themselves today.Most of us who made an impact in our early thirties came from modest means. We were not rich, and we did not have any noteworthy inheritance.
Nobody did us any favours, and the older generation did not give us a pass or a nudge in the right direction. In fact, the military administrations at the time made it extremely difficult for us to participate optimally in business, governance and politics. We did not have social media, and there was no technology to aide our goals. We were simply big dreamers determined to make a difference. We were highly enlightened and career-oriented, so we were able to force our way through the door by working extremely hard.
What some of the proponents of the argument against the older ministerial nominees, (and perhaps the older generation currently dominating the political and economic landscape) also fail to realize or remember is that even in my early thirties, we also had very established and older industrialists like MKO Abiola, Sam Asabia, Gamaliel Onosode etc, who all operated during our time. We respected them, but neither felt overwhelmed by their success, nor daunted by the prospects of climbing up the ladder. We simply forged ahead with our plans and damned the consequences. The point is nobody cleared the way for us back then, so young Nigerians today should not expect that anyone would clear the way for them either.
So what exactly needs to change amongst young Nigerians today? First, young Nigerians have to humble themselves. You have to be willing to learn the ropes and hone your craft. Around the age of 27, I left the relative comfort of a steady career at CBN to learn under the tutelage of Otunba Subomi Balogun, the visionary and pioneer behind FCMB. Working as Otunba Subomi Balogun’s executive assistant was an experience of a lifetime. He was (and still is) a well-organized and thorough individual. He strongly promoted excellence and perfection, and did not condone indolence, laziness or poor quality work.
He was also an impeccable dresser, always elegantly attired in all-white traditional wear or perfectly tailored quality suits. I picked up these virtues and adopted his style of leadership and management in my future endeavors. I was opportune to travel with him to attend corporate and other board meetings. I gained valuable and practical experiences in corporate board management and boardroom politics, which became useful tools later in my career.
Secondly, you must know your worth. Do not settle for less, and do not allow yourselves to be used by selfish political interests. Challenge the status-quo. Challenge the establishment. The youth make up a sizeable portion of the Nigerian populace. By extension, they have the loudest voices and the biggest potential. Alan Moore, a prominent British author opined that “People shouldn’t be afraid of their government. Governments should be afraid of their people”. This is especially true with regards to young Nigerians. You are more powerful than you give yourselves credit for. Our current president was victorious in large part due to the votes cast by young Nigerians, and you must continue to remind yourselves of this fact, because 2019 is already fast approaching.
Thirdly, and crucially, young Nigerians have to eliminate distractions. Do not get carried away by the allure of good living, bling, fame and fortune. Stay on the straight-and-narrow path. Distractions are the proverbial pot-holes; they slow you down from reaching your destination and damage your wheels in the process. By all accounts, social media is obviously the biggest distraction. It is a powerful tool, but can also derail you from focusing on the bigger picture. The most discerning amongst you will know how to navigate social media without hindering your ability to make significant inroads in the economic and political fabric of Nigeria. I have been impressed with what the likes of Linda Ikeji, Bellanaija, Don Jazzy, TY Bello, Jimi Mohammed, Banke Meshida-Lawal and other young Nigerians have been able to accomplish at such a young age, and it should serve as an inspiration toother young Nigerians in various fields as well.
Finally, take advantage of opportunities, no matter how small or inconsequential they may be at the time. Expect no helping hands. And when these opportunities present themselves, grab what you can. During our cabinet meetings, my boss and mentor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu always quipped that “Power is never served a-la-carte”. This is indeed true in the context of where young Nigerians currently are, and where they need to be.
Our nation is at a critical crossroads. The age bracket between 18-35 years constitutes the majority of our working population group, and naturally, they should be the most productive and active segment of our country’s economic activity and nation-building efforts. Unfortunately, the youth of today are indolent, unemployed and generally incapacitated. Some are unable to make ends meet, and have not shown any sustained interest in holding leadership position. They abstain from holding governance positions at the local, state and national levels. Ironically and confusingly, they allow themselves to be used as street (and very recently, internet/online) thugs, miscreants and protesters to pursue the selfish agendas of older politicians.
Despite all of this, I have a lot of faith in the youth of today, but young Nigerians need to start having faith in themselves as well. You need to wake up from your slumber, and pilot the much-needed change process urgently. You must be willing to side-step all the pit-fall distractions and refocus your collective mindsets. You have to be guided by a desire to excel, and you must continue to push yourselves to grow in a tough, competitive and cut-throat environment that still exists today. Who knows? With a bit of conviction, commitment and guile, you may be able to produce a young, vibrant and dynamic Nigerian as our President much sooner than you think!
Otunba Femi Pedro is a Banker and an Economist. He is a former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, and the former Managing Director of First Atlantic Bank (FinBank) Plc. He can be reached via the Twitter Handle: @femipedro
END
Insightful piece!!! Every generation is responsible for solving its own problems. What today youths need from the likes of Otunba Femi Pedro is not hand out or ‘ladder’ but principles as stated in this piece. Principles that made them thick and achieved all that they did. I recommend this piece for every Nigerian below 40.
In 1988, as an 18 year old studying accountancy in a higher institution (polytechnic) in Nigeria, I was one of the privileged persons who had gone through a sound educational background having attending public schools (a Federal Government College inclusive) and looked at the future of Nigeria as bright despite the fact that we were undergoing the transformation of the Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) – brought upon us by several years of mismanagement of the economy of our country.
I was one of the people who witnessed the transformation of the banking sector via the liberalization policy of the Ibrahim Babaginda administration which brought about the opportunities that emboldened the likes of Otunba Femi Pedro and his contemporaries to set up Guaranty Trust Bank GTB.
As a student I had envisaged a bright future in new institutions like GTB and eventually, branch out to live my dream of being an entrepreneur. Sad as it may seem, I never had that opportunity because most of the new generation banks had set a rather disingenuous precedence: they would not employ graduates from a polytechnic for reasons best known to them. Consequently, the banking liberalization policy which gave Otunba Pedro and other brilliant young people he mentioned in his article a lifeline, did not translate to opportunity for outstanding young people as some paid dearly for attending polytechnics and second generation universities.
The team had unwittingly given life to a discriminatory practice that was not in existence when they were climbing up the success ladder. It is pertinent to note that the objectives were bold; however bold objectives are not based on age, but are based on the creation of the enabling environment for people to have access to the needed resources to take advantage of opportunities like the persons who set up GTB had. Today, the banking sector has not evolved beyond the trader mentality which was created by the promoters of new generation banks. Otunba Femi Pedro was one of the frontline promoters of that ‘wind of change’.
I admire the fact that as young adults, Otunba Pedro latched on to opportunities that only the bold and visionary could appropriate. However, I believe that it is even of greater importance that when you start to climb up the ladder and/or go up a lift, you should remember to send it back down so that others can have a platform to climb up the same way you did.
What we have today is a sea of heads endlessly waiting for ‘ladders’ which hold a deluge of opportunities. Yes, there’s always the argument of ‘take the initiative and never wait for the ladder”, but never a mention of how much better it would have been if the people who got ‘ladders’ shared with others. This is what I see as the real issue regarding the curious case of the young generation.
Why have we gotten to this point? I feel it is because those young people who got ‘ladders’ from the generation before them either forgot to send them back or refused to.
Arguably, the team set up one of the finest financial institutions Nigeria has ever had, but have you asked yourself this the question. What has this institution and those similar to it done in the last 20 to 25 years to create the opportunities that would lead to more small and medium scale businesses in the various sectors of the economy? Rather what in my opinion has happened is the creation of a handful of businesses – tied directly and/or indirectly to a generation that benefitted from the opportunities created by a system called Nigeria and today has created situations where in the words of Otunba Femi Pedro – “we simply dreamt big and turned this dream into a mere figment of our imagination”
In as much as I have high regards for the young successful entrepreneurs mentioned in this article, it is important to note that the system that gave traction to their dreams were created by their predecessors.
I believe there must be a system that ensures that these opportunities are continually being created. This for me is where these successful entrepreneurs have failed the system and the nation.
I ask and I stand to be corrected, what are their legacies in creating new small and medium scale businesses that have become household names like they did when they got their opportunities? Instead for me they have created conglomerates that revolve around them, purely monopolistic institutions.
As one who likes Nigerian history, though it is rarely written and spoken about today to our young generation, I admire the courage of our founding fathers and some of their great achievements. However it is important to note that when these people took over the reins of governance in our great nation, some of them rather than try and build upon the systems inherited and continually improve on them, they systematically started the degradation and obliteration of these systems which their predecessors had worked hard upon to improve.
One of such examples worth mentioning is the systematic cannibalization of the civil service system which today has become the root of many of the problems associated with our country.
This was gradually adopted by the next generation of great entrepreneurs some as highlighted by Otunba Femi Pedro. These persons have systematically cannibalized the various sectors that provided them huge opportunities as young people all in the name of capitalism.
My only issue with this is that even in the big capitalist economies, there are still policies and systems that help young entrepreneurs achieve their objectives and goals without necessarily threatening the oligarchs.
I would like to commend Otunba Femi Pedro for his time of continually mentoring young Nigerians. However my question to him is quite simple. What policy initiatives and systems did he help create as a member of the ruling and entrepreneurship class to create these opportunities for the young people?
How has he ensured that these systems do no frustrate these young people to the point that their ideas only become a figment of their imagination? Maybe I would need to refresh our memories a bit, GTB came into being when the issuance of a banking license was N50 million for Commercial Banks and N40 Million for Merchant Banks and the CBN requirements were very clear as to create the opportunities, this led to the proliferation of banks and reached an all-time high of over 90 banks in the country.
Also worth mentioning is the fact that with all this proliferation of banks and opportunities, the system witnessed the greatest period of bank frauds and liquidations. So what lessons did these young entrepreneurs teach their young up and coming protégées?
In as much as I agree that nobody did them any favors, neither did the older generation give them a pass and/or nudge in the right direction, nor did they have the level of technology that is available today, the question that still bugs me as an individual with this generation of Otunba Pedro is simple, when you got the opportunities, what systems did you put in place to ensure sustainability?
Rather what I saw and still see today is them creating the same thing that they did many years ago when they got the opportunities, a system of me, myself and I. This has transcended so deep into their manner of thinking and try to justify their opportunities as not be thrust on them on a platter of gold, but them taking advantage of system that had been cannibalized and further cannibalized by them.
I read with sadness this statement by Otunba Femi Pedro. Yes it true that these older industrialist were already established, but one thing I am sure that their generation did not learn from them neither did they learn from our founding fathers is the fact that these industrialist and the founding founders after climbing up the ladder of success remembered that there was a future behind them as such they let the ladder back down.
Unfortunately, Otunba Femi Pedro and his contemporaries climbed up these ladders and rather than let it back down they took it with them and when they created lifts, it was only for them to their pent houses.
As such for almost thirty years, it has taken a lot more effort to climb as there are no ladders and the steps required to reach the pent houses are much steeper than most people anticipated.
I really do agree with Otunba Femi Pedro on this. However the question I will pose to him here is simple, on what basis did Otunba Subomi Balogun give him the opportunity at 27 years to come learn and be tutored? Did he set criteria that automatically disqualified people because of their type of educational qualification or the institutions where they attend?
I am sure if these were some of the criteria, I do not believe he and so many others would have that opportunity at such a young age to get such quality tutelage from such a great entrepreneur.
Yes I agree fully with Otunba Femi Pedro and will advise the young generation not to settle for the status-quo. As such I will join him in voicing out to the young generation that the real change in Nigeria is 2019 and they must take back what is theirs from the youth of yester years and move this country forward in this age of technology.
Though I have been quite critical of some of Otunba Femi Pedro’s comments regarding the young generation, I concur with him that for the young generation to start having a say in their future, they must imbibe all of the things he has stated – bling, fame and fortune – this is because no man has ever had great success without straight forward hard work. This is because any short cuts to success are sure to end in destruction. They can read the history of Al-Capone
In as much as agree with the fact that “power is never served a-la-carte” those in power and the corridors of power must have the political will to create a system where, young people’s ideas can see the light at the end of the tunnel, rather than it be shut down like rubbish only for them to be seen being used wrongly within the same system.
Finally I want to say that the next four years of our country’s history can be told differently if and only if the young generation realize that for them to move forward they must take what rightfully belongs to them from those who have usurped it for the last 50 years and believe that a man of 65 years old is worthy to be called a youth leader.
I also want to thank Otunba Femi Pedro and use the opportunity to let him know that for the young generation to understand the need for them to wake up from their slumber, then, the current older generation must remind us of the history of our great country Nigeria.
This history should not be limited to the discovery of the river Niger by Mongo Park, the amalgamation of Nigeria in 1914, the civil war between 1967 and 1970, but also about the history of Nigeria in the last 55 years must be fully written and taught in our schools so that the young generation can know the potentials that are in every Nigerian and the possibilities that abound if only they are focused.
Thank you
Uade Ahimie is an Accountant and Corporate Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) professional. He is an ex banker and currently in the Energy sector as the Head of GRC in one of the leading Energy company. He can be reached cgesgrafrica@gmail.com
I found this experience sharing inspiring, articulate and encouraging. I wish I could have a one on one discuss with Otunba Pedro.
Thanks sir
he will be at the discourse this sunday
This, I must say, is very true and real. It speaks directly to the Nigerian Youth. An experience every Nigerian can relate with.
Thank you for sharing this.
WAKE UP NIGERIA
Mentoring; that was the word that stood out for me throughout. We could do with a better organised mentoring program like the one the writer enjoyed with Otumba Balogun. It is often an overlooked tool in Nigeria and where used (especially in politics) often results in ‘God Fatherism’ problems.
I will say a big thank you to Otunba Femi Pedro for those inspirational & motivational accolades, but the battle of life remains in our hands because all that Glitters are not Gold, so therefore it’s a wake up ? call for each and everyone of us, and most especially our younger generation to believe more in themselves rather than joining in the wrong social menace of Yahoo, gay and lesbianism as way’s of life. It’s a clarion call for us all. Thanks for those insightful information and arising from our slumber.
Baba Femo!
Qudos to you.
I strongly suggest that you muster a national YOUTH FORUM for Nigerians. Start in Lagos, go round the nation and then to other countries.
God will enable you to finance the meetings with the interest of your friends and connections.
YOU WILL GO DOWN IN NIGERIAN HISTORY BY LEAVING THIS LEGACY.
I love you Sir
Daps
Nkechi Mordi dropped a very vital tool. You must work for it to earn and own it. Regardless of the very tough terrain that today offers, a lot of better ways of doing things have equally been established. Youth involvement in politics in Nigeria is very low and bad. It must be worked on, Sad that we have a huge youth number who still just follow old and used up leaders. Something just need be told like this article did. Otunba Pedro, thanks for this piece
Well worded piece of advice to Nigerian youths.quite wise words of an elder as given to our youths out of his life experience. As to instances of Nigerian youths involvement in governance after our independence, youths of those days who were educated had more opportunity as only few were educated unlike today. Hence the present day Nigerian youth need to be more resourceful to survive as government cannot employ all our graduates. They should exhibit that virtuos attribute of humility as stated in the write-up.The complaint about the current ministerial nominees by the presidency need not arise, as Buhari is an old and astute administrator who was governor of then north eastern states by 1976 and later president by Jan.1984.Hence he knows what is doing and own the right to choose the calibre of people he wishes to work with. He should be given the chance.The first time he was president of this country, there was discipline. The issue of youth involvement in governance was adopted by goodluck Jonathan with all the mediocrity that went by Jonathan’s ineptitudeness in the art of governance and which the country is yet to recover leaved much to be desired. So much for frankness!.
Great and inspiring work! I stumbled on this while searching for material for a Sunday service message titled “Networking for Success”. I’m sure going to share this piece with the youths in my church, it will surely help drive the point home. Thanks and God bless.
I honestly touched with this ARTICLE from Chief Pedro.I have learnt a lot also.At forty there is also a hope,all what are just needed are to be hardworking,dedicated and probably grab ones opporrunity whenever it comes.Surely civil service work does not help youths it kills the ambition one has.So if i had known i would have been doing private business.Thanks for your write up.UP PEDRO.
As much as this is a nice write up,we wouldn’t under emphasise the fact that things are obviously worse than it use to be which makes it increasingly difficult for the youth of this days. Even when they asked one of the ministerial nominees “what chance does the youth stand to rise up in politics” the nominee which I can specifically figure the name said “the elder ones in politics are the guide of the younger ones”we have enough bad eggs already in politics i wonder how they want to mentor us and help us. Furthermore, there were job opportunities for every graduate then which we don’t have. For people to have stood up to say they want to own a bank then, at least they have some capital which has been raised as a result of working for a while either in the public sector or private sector. For people like us we trying to start something small since we can’t even get a job and there are many others like me who might even be frustrated and they say”An idle hand is the devils workshop” we wouldn’t like we still have to go back to the words of people like Fashola, Dr Kachikwu and Mrs kemi Adeosun that decentralisation, power, building of infrastructures and proper utilisation of our fuel, investing into Agriculture would create jobs for our youth and reduce crime rate, even 50percent of Internet fraudsters are graduate. If we have more employment opportunities, it can enable us work for a while and then get good enough capital to start our own business too thereby creating more job opportunities just like you have done with Gtbank. God bless
fine and highly thought provoking write up Its a great challenge to our youths and we should appreciate that power is not served ala c’arte We need to advise we elders to be tolerant of the youths ,provide them with necessary mentoring and do away with the destruction tendencies We should try to provide them with conducive environment too thank u,Mr Pedro We hope you will share us of your political experience
This is wonderful Femi. I watched you very closely and admired your exploits as MD of First Atlantic Bank before you became deputy Governor. You summed it up freedom is not given. It is taken. Thanks for sharing this thought.
True talk sir and its going to get tougher not easier. For me, all I take from this is, whoever dares wins once he/ she stays focused. After all, ‘power, is never served a-la-carte’. Very instructive!
The other thing about today’s youth is their laziness, penchant for short cuts, fast foods, shunting, name it. They hardly develop themselves properly intellectually, though filled with big dreams no doubt but lack the ability to conceptualise , design, implement, monitor and make the desired impact.
Like chief Pedro said, 2019 is not far but only quality will sell not violence nor thuggery. Arise, Nigerian youths, the stage is set for you. Go for it. You can make the difference. We cannot offer less.
Thank you chief Pedro and may you live long.
True talk sir and its going to get tougher not easier. For me, all I take from this is, whoever dares wins once he/ she stays focused. After all, ‘power, is never served a-la-carte’. Very instructive!
The other thing about today’s youth is their laziness, penchant for short cuts, fast foods, shunting, name it. They hardly develop themselves properly intellectually, though filled with big dreams no doubt but lack the ability to conceptualise , design, implement, monitor and make the desired impact.
Like chief Pedro said, 2019 is not far but only quality will sell not violence nor thuggery. Arise, Nigerian youths, the stage is set for you. Go for it. You can make the difference. We cannot do offer less.
Thank you chief Pedro and may you live long.
Thank you very much sir Otunba. This is a wake-up call for each and everyone of us.We must follow the narrow way or old path which is the good way. We must be ready to take risk and abandone fear of uncertainties reigning in our minds. We must be focused and make the GOAL unambigious.
Thanks for reminding of hard facts I am beginning to loose sight of. I picked ‘internet thug’ phrase from you. That is a new form of old ailment. The bad path is that the victims are not aware of the disease.
Thank you for the beautiful piece. As they say in my region – ‘let people with ear hear’ . Sound advice from exceptionally sound mind
This is so very true indeed! I used to think like the average nigerian youth, that I need someone to pave the way for me to succeed but thank God for the spirit of discernment that came upon me . My fellow Nigerian youth, the truth is, you must have a vision and a strong passion to actualise it . God bless Nigerian youth.
You have to be willing to learn the ropes and hone your craft. Around the age of 27, I left the relative comfort of a steady career at CBN to learn under the tutelage of Otunba Subomi Balogun, the visionary and pioneer behind FCMB. Working as Otunba Subomi Balogun’s executive assistant was an experience of a lifetime. He was (and still is) a well-organized and thorough individual. He strongly promoted excellence and perfection, and did not condone indolence, laziness or poor quality work.
This is a word for the time. considering the hand of the clock on our nation time. taking a cue form the elaborated text of Otunba Femi Pedro when he quoted Asiwaju as saying ‘Power is never served a-la-Carte’. Nigeria divided into the older generation and younger (my generation)have pass through a stage of her life. but i will say that the conspiracy of the older generation is to perpetually entrench themselves in power for as long as possible (Life Patron of Nigeria nation). you said to DREAM(VISION) is the very first move to make. we can then follow the path of smart and determined pursuit of the dream.
I never regret being a Nigerian but my regret is if I do achieve what I set to achieve whether this selfish and wicked older generation like it or not. I don’t care if the atmosphere is favorable of not. but posterity will judge this present older generation.
Nice piece from Chief Pedro. A word is said to be enough for the wise.
How I wish the youths of this nation would just take heed and refocus their energies to much more beneficial things said here, the sky would only become the starting point for us. I have been opportuned to meet youths from beyond the shores of this country and I tell you we standout …..
Thank you Chief for this message.
This is really what is needed right, you talked straight right at me and I am encouraged and emboldened by your story.
It gives the right to dream and work assiduously towards achieving it.
Words on marble and will be imprinted in my heart for a long time.
Waooo…i feel blessed to hv come across dis article n tank you sir for hving the courage to speak the bitter truth!…tanks mentor!
This is one of the best write-ups I have read so far this year. It was written specially for me. Thank you for sharing.
It couldnot have been said better. Very inspiring.
Reading through this piece, I feel like the writer is talking to me directly. I feel inspired and promise now on to work harder and I strongly believe success is on my way. I suggest the writer upgrades this piece to a book in form of biography. Thanks Sir!
So inspiring! No better time to get involved than now. We shall not let you and our dear nation down.
This piece is just great!! I hope the youths that always insults and curse their elders under the disguise of social media can come and read this…God bless you sir!!!
Thanks for this sir. I wish more adult will be more courageous in sharing their stories… this is very encouraging. Very enlightening.
“The age bracket between 18-35 years constitutes the majority of our working population group, and naturally, they should be the most productive and active segment of our country’s economic activity and nation-building efforts. ” Food for thought
I am so glad I came across this piece,its a wake up call for the youth in tjis nation.Some of us had been carried away with the good things of life that they have forgotten purpose and lost focus,too preoccupied with mundane things of life.The youth of this nation has to wake up from their slumber and take their rightful place in the scheme of things.The future of this great Country rest on us and we take it to the next level.Things are the way it is due to our negligence.This country is waiting eagerly for the youth to play their path and not until its done Nigeria will remain the way it is.
Thank you Sir for thos ee need people like you to open our eyes and ears to the truth.
A very balanced analysis from someone who knows. No one offers you anything worthwhile in life. You work for it, earn it and then own it. It is that simple. Any young person who is desirous of positions of power or top jobs should gear up to fight for it and show themselves worthy of it.
good response Nkechi. A balanced view as you said.
This is a great word for such a time as this. There may be challenges in our country today, but I believe the opportunities are more.