The Indomitable Youth Organisation (IYO), a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), has urged youths not to allow themselves to be used to perpetrate violence and disrupt the 2023 general elections.
Dr Bright Oniovokukor, Project Director of the NGO, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Benin on Friday.
According to Oniovokukor, youths should realise that they are the leaders of tomorrow and they need not destroy the future they are to inherit.
“As the 2023 elections build up, a lot of interests are setting in, both in the area of protecting interest and defending interest of their benefactor.
“In the process of protecting these interests, it has become worrisome that youths are being used to perpetuate violence.
“It must be noted that while these violence may be termed politically motivated, some are really not politically induced but to address selfish interest.
“The youth need to be empowered with the right information that would help them to be good leaders,’’ he said.
He said that the call for youths to shun violence should come from all quarters, most especially from religious, traditional and social leaders.
“We must continue to speak against it in words and in actions to help our youths.
“Leaders using youths as tools for violence should be condemned openly and where necessary, they should be punished to serve as deterrent to others.’’
According to him, an idle mind is the devil’s workshop, and urged that youths should be kept busy with things that will make them useful in nation building. (NAN)
