WHAT DO OUR YOUTHS DO?

Things have really changed in our country.I am wondering about our future. Atiku is still warming up. PMB is holding fort. Tinubu is on the wings. Aregbesola is huffing and puffing. Peter Obi is warming up. Orji Uzor Kalu is being prepped up.

These are all politicians but today, my mind should be far from politics and focused on Demography and Economics. Bugging my mind today is the future of our young people. Politics is about authoritative allocation of scarce resources and I wonder where our young people feature, today.

By young people I am referring to those under 40 years of age, for is it not said that life begins at 40?

Time there was when one could chart his life from teens to age 40 barring death and illness of a serious nature. Today, how many people can attempt that?

Perhaps a young man or woman could reasonably predict when he or she can qualify as an accountant or as a lawyer or a medical practitioner or a registered Engineer or a Computer Scientist or a journalist.

The hard part is having thus overcome the odds, what are the chances of getting a job that can pay a living wage? 

For the few Professions listed before, for every successful story, there are legions of also ran. Where do they end up?

Entertainment, teaching, Security and Driving to mention a few legitimate options while not delving into the illegitimate ones. 

The creme de la creme are not sure of a living wage. What happens to the rest. What percentage of our young people are graduates? Of the graduates, what percentage read the prime courses?

When you add up the graduates in the non essential courses to the others, then you have a whole load of challenges on your hands.

Not all that apply to the tertiary Institutions get admitted. What options are open to the rest?

Learning a trade. What are the trades that are available?

Tailoring, football, Plumbing, Electric wiring, Motor Mechanic, Trading, Carpentry among others.

As a teacher, I was aware that Nigeria, consciously made a plan to wean the country from the British Grammar School model to the American model that will give room to learning Technical Subjects while not neglecting Grammar and the Arts. That was what gave rise to the abandonment of 6 - 5 - 2 - 3 system of 6 years in Primary School, 5 years in Secondary School, 2 years of Higher School for Advanced Level and 3 years of University Degree for 6 - 3 - 3 - 4 of 6 years of Primary School, 3 years of Junior Secondary School, 3 years of Senior Secondary School and 4 years for a University Degree.

Essentially, the difference in the two systems was that the older system had no room for technical education and the pass rate for the Advanced Level was scandalously low.

The new system had embedded in it a new Subject, which was Introductory Technology. It went further to make it possible to divert from secondary school to Technical Colleges after Junior Secondary Education.

The aim was to get a pool of artisans who have been sufficiently schooled to carve a niche for themselves while not feeling inferior. Hitherto, the model in operation was to learn a trade by the road side under informal settings leading to very unprofessional and acrimonious services.

What went wrong? From my little corner, I was privileged to see a bit of the problem. Government was either not convinced or did not know how to make it work. Left to me, the system was laudable but like the road to hell, so many things went wrong,

Machines were supplied to schools and the unimaginable happened. Government would open roads with fanfare, but the roads to our technological advancement were neglected.

Schools could not deploy the machines. Unbelievable is it not? Between the Government, their Contractors and the Schools, the machines were not deployed.

Somehow, the School heads were not saddled with the responsibility of Installing the machines. Government got contractors to do so. In itself, not a bad idea except that, Government for reasons I do not know, did not bother to follow through and School heads were too timid to complain.

That for sure I noticed. Today, the system is gasping for breadth. Perhaps, the idea behind the change was not the benefit of society but a way to make mind boggling sums for Government officials and their hangers on.

Today, Youths find expression in Entertainment, Riding Bikes, Placing bets, Internet Fraud and Driving not forgetting Security jobs and Hawking.

As the government officials keep jobs for their children and grandchildren, what hope for the army of unemployed youths without connection?

In the end, the Youths continue to hear the mantra that they are the leaders of tomorrow, a tomorrow that may be in Europe, America or Canada as foreigners without a hope in their country or their future.

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