APC Governors Vow To Tackle Unemployment   

The governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Nigeria have vowed to tackle the menace for unemployment in their respective states, saying it is a major impediment to Nigeria’s quest for economic development
Gathered in the ancient city of Ibadan, the 13 APC governors held serious discussions about the future of Nigeria starting with measures to tackle unemployment.
The governors, under the aegis of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, held their first Progressive Governance Lecture entitled “Unemployment and the Crisis of Governance in Nigeria: The Way Forward.”
It was a gathering aimed at examining the nature, scope and dynamics of the current unemployment and governance crisis in Nigeria with a view to exploring alternative, creative and innovative solutions that could lead to mass creation of decent jobs and good governance in Nigeria.
In his address of welcome, the host governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, saluted the APC leaders for the initiative of proffering scientific solutions to the problems of unemployment in Nigeria.
Governor Ajimobi, who described the problem of unemployment as a global one that was touching many countries in various degrees, noted that Nigeria’s unemployment rate was spiralling upwards, growing at 16 per cent per year.
“We must do something urgently as a nation to reverse this trend. We must be attentive to the alarm raised by a concerned citizen who warned that of all the aspects of social misery, nothing is as heart-breaking as unemployment,” the governor stated.
The governor said the lecture series organised by APC was to provide a platform for leadership.
“If you have leadership without governance, you risk tyranny and fraud. If you have governance without leadership, you risk atrophy, bureaucracy and indifference,” he said.
Delivering a lecture on “Nigeria’s High Unemployment Paradox’’, Dr Ayo Teriba articulated the root cause of huge unemployment indices and proffered solutions both at the short and long term in APC controlled states and the federal level.
“Unemployment rate has increased three-fold in the last 15 years, with the worst increases happening between 2007 and now.
“To make democratic governance a tool for delivering tangible and enduring economic benefits in the future, Nigeria should make monthly employment data available before the end of each month, fix rail transportation, rethink fiscal policy, re-focus monetary policy and ensure that elected officials accept responsibilities for policy formulation and coordination,” Dr Teriba, who is an economist pointed out.
The chairman of the the Progressive Governors’ Forum and the Governor of Imo State, Mr Rochas Okorocha, said the mission of the progressives was to provide a unifying platform for partnership and collaboration among all state governors that promote the principles and practices of progressive politics in order to address current and future governance challenges.
Governor Okorocha assured the forum that the resolutions reached at every lecture would be adopted by all APC states and used to develop workable strategies for job creation.
The National Leader of APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, decried the high level of insecurity in Nigeria attributing it to the high rate of unemployment which he described as a time bomb that could explode if not urgently addressed.
Tinubu, who was represented by a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Aminu Bello Masari, called on the leaders in the country to stop protecting their seats but rather concentrate on how to find lasting solution to insecurity and unemployment currently ravaging the country.
The lecture, which is to be held every quarter, also had in attendance, deputy governors, party chieftains such as the Interim National Chairman, Mr Bisi Akande, former Head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, former Governors Olusegun Osoba and Niyi Adebayo as well as Pastor Tunde Bakare among others.