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FROM RIGHT Mr.IFEANYI EBIOGBE PRESIDENT-GENERAL,CHIEF FESTUS OCHONOGOR,SENIOR POLITICAL ADVISER TO GOVERNOR OKOWA,MR.KARO ILOLO COMMISSIONER FOR YOUTHS,HON.TOUYO ORITSEMATOSAN,CHAIRMAN WARRI SOUTH WEST AND HON.INNOCENT ESENWUZIA DIRECTOR-GENERAL, ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY YOUTHS DELTA STATE.

By Chukwudi Abiandu
The business of organizing the youth of Delta state for responsible leadership, towards peace and progress of the state was moved a notch higher today, Wednesday, 27/6/2018 with the gathering of youth leaders from the 25 local government areas in Asaba in an executive/management team meeting.
The meeting which held under the aegis the Association of Community Youths, Delta State at the Association’s secretariat on Anwai Road, Asaba, had in attendance the Political Adviser to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Chief Festus Ochonogor, the Director of Protocol, who is also the President General of the Association, Mr. Ifeanyi Eboigbe, the Commissioner for Youth Development, Mr. Cairo Ilolo, and Mr. Vincent Esewezie, the Director General of the youth group.
The leaders who took turns to speak praised the state government for taking out time to organize the youth of Delta state, saying that this is the first time that conscious effort is being put in place by a government in Nigeria to engage youths deliberately to inculcate in them a sense of service at the community level as leaders, thereby ensuring that there is peace in their various communities for development to thrive.
“The governor has the youths in mind, and we must not disappoint him. And we must get it right. And in getting it right, you must remove sentiment and work together with our traditional rulers and the president generals of the various communities. We believe in collective responsibility. We are the original youths that are working for the peace and progress of this state. And we must work with the local Government Area Chairmen,” Mr. Eboigbe said.
He continued: “As community youth, we are out to do many things towards ensuring peace and progress in the communities. The community youth knows the good and bad persons in the community. If any stranger enters a community, it is the youth that will know first. If a kidnapper kidnaps someone in your area, and you keep quiet, tomorrow you can become a victim. I appeal to you to you that community youth is not only for government, it is very much in the interest of the community youths. We are to defend the interest of government by ensuring that there is peace and development in the communities.”
Chief Ochonogor, the Political Adviser to Governor Okowa said the exercise of assembling the youth under the aegis of Association of Community Youths Delta state is aimed at establishing a management team thereby localizing the activities of government by bringing the youths to provide leadership in the communities.
“He warned: “Nobody should carry his own interest, your interest now is the Governor’s interest for peace and progress of the communities. Community youth does not have factions. We must behave as one family; party differences and other differences should be discarded. We must be united and be more cohesive as youths. We want to ensure that there is unity in our communities, cohesion and progress.”
Ochonogor also said that in the executive/youth management agenda that nobody is indispensable. He said no one should think that without him, things cannot work., but pointed out that the ideal thing is for all to work together as it is not possible to do all the work alone. “You cannot be an attacker, a mid-fielder and a defender all at the same time,” Ochonogor explained, adding: “What we are trying to do is to build leadership that cuts across all segments of the society. We can win election without violence.”
The commissioner for Youth development, Cairo Ilolo told the youth leaders to see their engagement as an opportunity to serve as leaders in their communities. “See it as a call to duty to show case the various talents and skills that we possess as youths,” he said, pointing out that the name word youth should connote persons who are responsible, as opposed to what obtained hitherto where the youth is perceived as trouble makers. “When we return to our communities, we should be able to showcase our sense of responsibility,” Ilolo counseled.
For the avoidance of doubt, Mr. Eboigbe clarified that the Association of community Youths Delta State Executive/Management Team is not a PDP based community youth outfit. It is a community based body. “You can belong to any political party, but as a youth who belong to a community, you belong to this group, your duty being to champion the cause of peace and progress of that community,” Eboigbe said.
Speaking to journalist, the Director General of Association of Community Youths, Delta State, Mr. Esewezie commended Governor Okowa for the initiative to organize Delta youths in a manner that will expose their talents and skills in a worthwhile manner for peace and development in the local communities. He revealed that many programmes have been line up to engage the youths including seminar trainings, among others.