27th March, 2019
Olabode Samuel
Ado-Ekiti
Youths in Ekiti have started an intensive grassroot campaign to awaken lost morals & encourage positive values.
The Youths under the aegis of the Patriot Group (PG) has called on Nigerians, especially the youths to shun negativity and embrace positive values.
Tosin Ajibare, Founder Of the Movement for the Development Of Youths and Children, and Leader Of the Patriot Group remarked that, "it is imperative to deal with the issue of moral deficiency if we are to move forward as a People, as a State and as a Nation.
"When one looks at all the happenings going on in the country, the retrogressiveness, the rise in crimes, political violence, domestic violence, the level of corruption across board both private & public, ritual killings, fraudulent acts & the height of greed across corridors of power. One will realize that our matter is beyond shifting blames or making excuses.
"At no time do we have as much security agencies tackling every kind of crime, yet every form of negativity is still balooning off the charts. This points to the fact that there is something inherently lost amongst the people & that thing is nothing other than Positive Values."
He said, "Ekiti youths are now aware that it is only a better people that can build a better Nation and that the loss of morals have cost us dearly & as such we are ready to work hard to change the present narratives. Ekiti should be developed more than this, those who knew us as far back as the days of the Western Region and the Old Ondo state can attest to our brilliance, ability and honesty.
"Ekiti people were known for their immpecable character and unyieldingness when it comes to fraudulent deeds and as such we were progressing but over the years our values, heritage & legacy have become eroded, we cannot & we will not continue on this path, we must awaken that which is lost and regain our legacy, it is our only recourse to true development & salvation from the ills plaguing us."
He also pointed out that the issue of moral deficiency is not just a youth problem but a general problem that manifests itself in every category of citizens. In his words, he said, "this is why our campaign is not just about youths but about the populace as a whole, it is not a youth campaign but a youth driven campaign & we will be taking our message across board, into every nook & corner, into every sector, from the schools to the market, from the civil service sector to the artisans, from talking about exam malpractices & internet fraud to dishonest scales, from corrupt practices to fraudulent & deceptive attitude.
"It is our goal that our people become better, it is our goal that our people embrace honesty in all their dealings, It is our goal that our people eschew greed & avoid self centeredness.
"We want a better State, we want a better Nation and we believe that one can only give what one has."
One of the youths, Oluwalana Daniel a 200level student of Faculty of Law Ekiti state university, advocated the need for our religious institutions to teach and encourage moral uprightness, not just by way of mouth but by matching deeds with action, in his words, "you cannot be condemning fraud & corruption and be exalting fraudulent & corrupt people on the basis of being rich, it doesn't tally". He also recommended that it is high time educational institutions add the teaching of moral education to their curriculum and maybe even make anti-corruption a GST course in our tertiary institutions.
Comrade Olanrewaju Ojuoluwa, Secretary to the Joint Council Of Ekiti Youths said, "it is important that the Nation looks at Value reorientation as a solution to the numerous problems plaguing the Country and made a call on both private and public institutions, most especially the National Orientation Agency to rise up to the issue of moral deficiency and make it a task to teach our people to be Good, to be Kind, to be Hardworking, to be Dutiul, to be Honest in Our Dealings, to Eschew Greed, to Avoid Self-Centeredness and most especially, to be Patriots."