Project One, a Non Governmental Organisation (NGO) has charged Nigerian youths to use the social media positively as a tool for nation building.
Mrs Bisayo Busari-Akinnadeju, the convener of the group, gave the advice when she spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja.
Busari-Akinnadeju said that recent developments have shown that the social media can be used effectively for nation building.
“The reaction generated by the recent social media outage has actually showed that it has a great influence on Nigerian youths and that it can be used for nation building,” she said.
She urged youths to use social media to project and promote Nigeria’s image in a good way, rather than try to create a negative image for the country.
“Going by the hours of outage recorded on the three major social media platforms and the complaints by users, you can see the power attached to social media.
“It is therefore very pertinent for youths to use social media constructively, as a tool for nation building and not for destruction of Nigeria’s global image,” she said.
She said that youths had the power to sustain Nigeria’s spectacular image via social media and advised them to take ownership of the country by exploring its endless opportunities.
Busari-Akinmadeju said that Nigeria was called the Giant of Africa for a reason, urging every young Nigerian to strive to protect and project the image that was handed down by the country’s founding fathers.
“Great responsibilities lay on the shoulders of our youths in the area of protecting the sovereignty of the country by protecting its image.
“Sadly, what Nigerian youths failed to know is that our actions and words have contributed to where Nigeria is today.
“I tell people that when you go on social media and begin to say that Nigeria is bad, or Nigerians are corrupt and evil, you are only speaking about yourself.
“Later when you apply for a visa and get denied, you will realise that you have also contributed to that situation. So, we must all be mindful of our actions, both as youths and adults,” she said.
She appealed to youths not to give up on Nigeria, adding that the country has so much to offer in the future.
According to her, Nigeria belongs to the youth and it’s too early to give up on it.
“This is because we are responsible for the type and kind of Nigeria that the future generations will meet, see and experience.
“We owe children coming after us a strong and united nation that belongs to everyone,” she said.(NAN)
