Buhari: ‘Ndigbo Will Get Fair Share’, But Igbo Youths Question Those Who Went On The Solidarity Tourism
The Oasis Reporters
August 25, 2017
Who gets defined as a youth is critical to who represents the youths in Nigeria.
Under the military regimes of General Buhari into that of General Ibrahim Babangida, Air Commodore Emeka Omeruah was the Information Minister, the office being occupied today by Lai Mohammed. And there was a Beijing Conference that was convened for women.
Guess who the military appointed as the head of delegation.
Yes, you guessed right.
It was Emeka Omeruah, a very handsome Airforce officer and cartoonists had a field day making caricatures of the man in the middle of a women’s meeting. Ribs were tickled.
President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday assured that his administration would keep to it’s campaign promises to the Southeast geopolitical zone, asserting that the region would get its fair share.
This he did through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, while receiving Igbo youths under the aegis of Coalition of Southeast Youths for Buhari, COSYB, who stormed the Aso Villa gate to declare support for him.
He thanked the region for proving mischief-makers wrong that he no longer enjoys the support of Southeasterners.
Buhari also stated that his administration would do all that it can to keep the country together, adding that those trying to destabilize the country were only on a time wasting exercise.
He pledged that the roads, Second Niger Bridge as well as critical infrastructure in the region will be fixed by his administration.
Leader of the coalition, Steve Anyata, said they visited to declare support for the Buhari administration.
He thanked God for bringing the President back home safely from his medical vacation in London.
He said the solidarity rally was principally organised to provide Igbo youths with an open platform to, “as a bloc, counter the inhumane demonstrations by a handful of sponsored elements calling for your return or resignation.
“Second, our rally was also intended to drum the total solidarity and support of all of our own from the southeast geopolitical zone for you at a time we reckoned the nation was going through trying times occasioned by your sad, but unavoidable, fatherly absence.
“We also intended to achieve through the platform of the rally to say a word of prayer for you and to pledge our loyalty to you and the Nigerian federation.”
COSYB, which comprises several youth groups across the five states of the Southeast, however urged the President to take the quit notice issued to the Igbo in the North by Arewa youths serious, expressing optimism that with Buhari’s return, the issue would receive his immediate attention.
The solidarity was all well and good, but questions being asked by several youths in the South east is, ‘who are those self appointed youths that used their age grade on this solidarity tourism’?
The United Nations Educational, Scientific And Cultural Organization (UNESCO) define youths as young men and women between the ages of 15 to 25. But this definition can often be adjusted to suit individual nations, some who stretch their definition of youths to 35 years of age. Especially in highly populous countries like Nigeria where unemployment is rife, and men of 40 still stay with their parents and university students do a four year course in six to eight years owing to avoidable strikes by one group or the other.
Therefore when the South east youths Coalition group visited Buhari’s office to be received by Femi Adesina, more than a passing interest was taken in looking at their robust cheeks and well fed bodies.
The question is, are these youths or grandfathers?
