Elders should not be appointed youth affairs ministers – NYCN

The National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) has urged the federal and state governments not to appoint older people as ministers and commissioners of youth affairs.

This demand was made by a member of the council, Barrister Silas Onu, who is also one of the 15 candidates contesting the council’s presidential election.

Elections into the executive positions of the council are slated to hold during the National Unity Congress, which comes up in Abuja in August.

Speaking at a South East delegates’ meeting in Enugu, Onu also said it was wrong for political parties to appoint older people as their youth leaders at the national, zonal and state levels.

He said the council would mobilise youths across the country to reject what he described as the prevailing situation where older people are appointed to positions meant for young people.

According to Onu, an older person would not be able to effectively discharge the duties of a minister, or commissioner for youth affairs, as well as youth leader of a political party.

“You will agree with me that overtime, we have had ministers that oversee youth affairs that are not really young people, some have been really old men.

“The council should play some advisory role; make an input in the choice of the people that are appointed to that position, as well as the office of the special adviser or special assistant on youth matters.

“This is to make sure that people outside a particular age bracket are not appointed into these offices so that there will be no gap between the youths and the people that lead them.”

He said if you bring someone who is way above the age bracket of a young man, you can’t expect the person to understand the needs of the youths. “What you will have is a father/son, or father/daughter relationship, and that kills the spirit.

“You see situations where some people who are not within the age bracket of youths still come to the constituency to take up positions that are meant for youths, this is what the National Youth Council should fight against.

“If you have someone that is above the age of a youth as a national youth leader in a political party we will go to the party and tell them ‘we don’t recognize this your youth leader, please get another person!’

“We will make so much noise about it and if the party refuses to back down we will declare such a party an anti-youth party until they replace them with younger people.”

Onu admitted that even in the National Youth Council elections, some people who are above 35, the constitutionally stipulated age, have come out to contest for positions.