POLITICAL EDUCATION; RACING WITH THE REST OF THE WORLD BY BOLAJI AKINYEMI

Being the text of speech delivered by Dr. Bolaji Akinyemi, National Coordinator Project Victory Call ( AKA PVC-NAIJA) on the occasion of World Students Day, 15th October 2018, at Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry Conference Centre, Alausa, Ikeja. Lagos. Nigeria.

Protocols: Great Nigerian Students, Executives of National Union Nigerian Students, NUNS. Executives of National Association of Nigeria Students, NANS here present. Nigeria Labour Congress, Nigerian Union of Journalists, NUJ. Nigeria Bar Association, NBA. Gentlemen of the press, Ladies and Gentlemen.
May I stand on all existing protocols.
Preambles:

Nigerian students have been the life line of this nation. The struggle for our independence was championed by people who were mostly students in their days, and those who were not, caught, the bug while they were students abroad, enduring the temptation to abort their studies to join the struggle for the sole of mother land from our then colonial Master.
A good example of the Nigerian student spirit in the struggle of human emancipation was demonstrated through the formation of West Africa Student Union (WASU) in 1925 by Ladipo Solanke.
This is your time to make history again and change the order of the loopside political structure.
At twist and turn in the journey of our father land towards democracy, the voice of Nigerian students has been loud. Their courage was a force, they joined with others like NUJ, NBA, NLC and groups like NADECO who were products of the June 12 struggle to see the military off to the barrack.
Nigerian students are indeed great. That greatness, we are here to acknowledge and celebrate!
“Education is the key to liberation from pre-modal governance, the path way to human intellectual advancements and societal development, A people without education are covenanted to poverty” – Dr Bolaji Akinyemi @ world students day 2018.
In the past, we have often missed the take when it comes to electing our leaders, but the mistake became very obvious when desperation for change, led to change without a change of order, preparation was not made for the change we make.
Nelson Mandela said

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”
We can’t abandon our people in illiteracy and expect them to effect a desirable change.
Babajide Ogunsanwo Channels TV data analyst once said, “The guarantee that our people will keep voting in the same pattern is in one word, illiteracy”.
We therefore must rescue the most responsible percentage of our population to civic duty of election, from the grip of illiteracy.
This mass army are the ones at the mercy of political parties foot soldiers who are jobbers of the political elites who are sent into the street to exploit the ignorance of the people to the advantage of their pay masters.
If Nigeria must be saved come 2019, A step must be taken in the right direction. There is the need to set up a structure of enlightenment for our illiterate voters, Farmers, Artisans, market men and women. They are the proud parents of the great Nigerian students whose simplicities are manipulated for gullibility. This has remained an asset to the political class.
Our parents must be rescued through political education. Though the illiteracy of vast majority of our people are counter productive at making informed decision. Very disturbing is the illiteracy of our “educated illiterates” which has sustained the role that fake news and propaganda plays in our political decisions.

The state of our polity is a function of political illiteracy, our social media is awash with political ignorance.
Kofi Anan, said, “knowledge is power, information is liberating, education is the premise of progress in every society, in family.
Borrowing a leaf from Kofi Anan, a model, of bottom to top approach to trigger a process of godly change in our society (LG’s, States and National Government), from the family units to the larger societies, has informed the need for us to do the needful; educate our teeming illiterate populace.

Knowledge must be disseminated via education upon which every societal progress is premised.
POLITICAL EDUCATION.
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today”- Malcom X
Students and Youths being that class of our society to which the future belong, must be given the right to lead in making decisions that will impact on their future. They constitute the numerical strength of our voting population and their strength will be harnessed and deployed to prepare a glorious future for them. Their deployment to “RACING WITH THE REST OF THE WORLD” is imperative.
Global Race.

The world is in a race, a race so defined to provoke our creativity, but ignored till date by our leaders, defined by the phrase which qualifies the place we are occupying in a racing world; third world country! There is no doubt that the world has left us behind, but must we remain behind?

Our lagging behind is not a function of lack of energy, that we have in abundance, even our meals are a testimony to this.

The behind position of Africa is not due to the absence of natural resources. Nigeria alone is more endowed with this, than the whole of Europe put together. It is not in want of intellectual capacities for Africans are among the best of human resources contributing their quota to make other nations and continents attain greatness. We are about the best in every field of life, the realities of life and facts on record attest to this. This speech will end rhetorically without out a mentioned of very few:
Of, Oluwole Akinwande, the poet who gets you dizzy.

Bukola Elemide popularly known as “ASA” the “little hawk” because when she was young, will often ran away and changed direction like a hawk.

Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun, indeed a wizard at his trade, they call him wizkid.

Chimamanda Adichie, the pen merchant whose first two strokes on paper won a literary award.

Adeola Sagoe has given the world of fashion a strict challenge for its tittle.

Genevieve Nnaji has brought fame, glamour and elegance to the Nollywood Industry.

Oluchi and Agbani are among the best of ladies on the walk way.

Shola Ladoja who is redefining the critical area of our agricultural productivity, filling the gap of processing and preservation of farm products.

Laolu Isaac Sebanjo, whose work added value to Beyonce’s on her way to the Grammy.

Jelani Aliyu, the leading Nigeria car designer with General Motors, brought back home to head and give directions to National Automotive Design Development Council, (NADDC).

Bosun Tijani, whose exploit and work in ICT commanded the attention of Mark Zuckerberg to visit Nigeria. The list is endless!
The peril of Africa, is that the educated are not politically educated. The best are led by “The beast” and the mentality of the beast is perpetually to remain premodia so that ancient landmark are maintained, even when they stand in the path of the road we must construct for our development. Status quo, we must maintain even when they tend towards income loss, animals would not be ranched and his environment underdeveloped to retain the identity of a “giant jungle”.
Nigeria must not remain big for nothing.

Time to rise is now!!
Social Capital Investment.

The social capital of love, that nature has bestowed on relationship must become the engine to drive the change expected. The bonds of love between Students and their parents must come handy. The force of social influence generated through peer pressure will for once be positively channelled to bring the nation to the understanding of where we are in the global race, and the effort that must be unleashed to catch up with the rest of the world.
2019 elections for us at Project Victory Call Initiatives, A.K.A PVC-NAIJA, is viewed as hitting the mark for the race we must run.
Staggering Reality.

The population of Nigeria today is a guess, between 150- 200 million. That’s a problem, as certain provisions cannot be made for an uncertain number of people.
Our population today house the poorest of people in the world, the crisis is compounded with 13.5 million children out of school.
A Looming War.

70% of the proliferation of global small arms numbered at 500 million have found it’s way into Nigeria, with 300 million arms in a nation of 150million. That is an average of 2 arms per person. The monster behind this catche are the political class, whose children are kept far away from the battle ground, but their plan to unleash war against our innocent generation shall not see the light of the day.
What We Must Do!

We must make the right decision in 2019.

A Nigeria students who is 18 years old today would be 50 years old in 2050, the year the United Nations projection says our population will be 3rd largest in the world.

The preparation for 2050 must start now, by those who will be the adult then to manage the reality that 2050 portends.

Racing With The Rest Of The World.
Relay 2018- 2050
2019 must be decided to give us a good ahead start.
1st Leg Nigeria President 2019- 2023 (2027)
2nd Leg Nigeria President 2027- 2035
3rd Leg Nigeria President 2035- 2043
Last Leg Nigeria President 2043- 2051- YOU!!
Project Victory Call Initiatives, PVC-NAIJA is calling Nigerian Students and Youths to arise for a change of order, as we demand from every political parties their ROAD MAP TO 2050.
Thanks for your time and audience.
Dr Bolaji Akinyemi

National Coordinator Project Victory Call

(AKA PVC-NAIJA).