Ms Ene Obi, the Country Director of ActionAid Nigeria, says there is need for Nigerians to embrace peace, love as well as learn from one another to engender rapid socio- economic and political development of the country.
Obi made the call on Tuesday in Lokoja during the launch of Peace Club Mentors’ Guide and inauguration of Peace Clubs in six pilot schools.
The initiative was organised by Actionaid Nigeria in collaboration with Participation Initiative for Behavioural Change in Development (PIBCID), an NGO and the Kogi State government.
The exercise involves 500 pupils and students who will be engaged in peace advocacy and conflict resolution.
The country director, who was represented by Mr Oluwole Elegbede, Finance Director, ActionAid Nigeria, said that youths were often used as tools to execute violence and other social vices, hence the need to inculcate the virtues of peace in the young minds.
“Violence extremism has permeated and is threatening communal peace.
“It is regrettable that the vulnerability of Nigerian youths has led to so much violence, thuggery and other criminal activities in the country.’’
He said: “One of the things we challenge ourselves with is combating radicalism which gives rise to extremism among our youths who are always victims of structural injustice and inequality.
“We are launching the Mentors’ Guide because you don’t give people a responsibility without a guide.
“It is participatory, it is going to be owned by youths so that at the end, they are contributing to something they know is theirs,’’ Elegbede said.
Gov. Yahaya Bello of Kogi , represented by his Special Adviser on Health, Dr Ahmed Attah, commended ActionAid for its numerous interventions aimed at promoting peace in the state.
He said that the state government had invested so much to ensure the state remained peaceful and secured.
Bello also tasked the youth clubs in pilot schools to be agents of peace in all their activities.
Mrs Gift Owonipa, Executive Director, PIBCID and the ActionAid Project Manager in Kogi, said the idea was to create peace ambassadors in the six communities in particular and Kogi in general, using youths.
The schools according to her include the Community Secondary Schools in Ofuloko and Okpakpata in Igalamela-Odolu Local Government and Community Primary Schools in Osara and Osaragada/Aku communities of Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi.
She, however, promised that the programme would capture other schools in future. (NAN)
