Unemployed Graduates protest non-representation in confab

A group claiming to be the umbrella body of all unemployed Nigerian graduates has written an open petition to President Goodluck Jonathan, protesting their non-inclusion in the forthcoming national conference.

Acting under the aegis of National Association of Unemployed Graduates, the group described the development as unfortunate, adding that the government’s decision to populate the conference with political appointees would only make it go the way of the ones before him.

The letter, signed by the president of the association, Ehis Abuya, was given to journalists in Ibadan on Tuesday.

“We are convinced without prejudice or doubt, that our children would blame us if we fail to inform you, Mr. President, of the mockery of the committee as a result of misplaced priorities,” the letter stated.

The group said it acknowledged the investment of the president in the next generation of the country, but regretted that the crisis persists.

Urging the governments at all levels to find ways of engaging the youth profitably, they said employment provision is the major solution to the nation’s many problems.

“Unemployment is a big challenge in Nigeria, which over the years has represented a lost opportunity for national economic development. With the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) putting the current rate of unemployed Nigerians at 23.9 per cent, up from 21.1 per cent in 2010 and 19.7 per cent in 2009, the rising unemployment rate in Nigeria has in no small measure contributed to the continuous rise in social vices like terrorism, political thuggery, violence and even teenage pregnancies among youths in many parts of the country.

"We represent the frustrated, angsty and angry youth in the society, forced to act after going through the 492 political selections for the National Conference and noticing the deafening silence concerning unemployment and the unemployed.

"We passed through various challenges and delays in school such as ASUU strikes, late school enrolment due to poverty and/or ignorance, bureaucratic arrangement in government, unfortunate policies and administrative problems.

"Mr. President, we live in a country where people now sell jobs. Everyone had hitherto been quiet about this completely unacceptable and despicable act and it must be looked into. We are human capital, and this is by far, the greatest asset any country can have. We are worth more than the oil in the South-South or the pepper from the North, we cannot afford to sit down and watch ourselves waste away anymore," the letter read in part.