Unemployment responsible for crime increase in Nigeria - Abeng

Mr Eyam Abeng 

The President of Cross River University of Technology, CRUTECH alumni association, Mr. Eyam Abeng has said that unemployment is responsible for the spate of crime rate in Nigeria.

Abeng stated this over the weekend in Obubra while presenting the keynote address titled "The 21st Century Youths: Challenges and Prospects Towards Effective Leadership " during a one day Youths summit organized by the Central People’s Assembly.

He maintained that unless government at all levels design programmes to properly engage the youths in meaning ventures, unemployment will remain serious a threat to Nigeria existence as one indivisible entity.

Abeng who said the situation was a time bomb however urged all hands to be on deck to ensure that the potentials of our youths are harnessed to develop the country.

According to him, "There are myriad of problems facing youths in the Nigerian society. These problems make the youths depressed and lose interest in activities going on around them.

"Unemployment is undoubtedly the biggest problem facing our youths today. The job situation cannot even cope with the number of graduates our over 100 universities churn out each year. Unemployment is directly responsible for vices such as armed robbery, prostitution and fraud which have become so common today. If the potentials of our youths are not harnessed, it can become a challenge and a time bomb as it currently is".

Continuing, Abeng urged government to invest heavily in the education sector as well as set up vocational programmes that will enable youths to become job creators after leaving school not job seekers.

In his words "There is almost complete absence of work programmes and vocational activity setups by government to improve young people’s workability prospects. Youths are neither trained for self-employment nor entrepreneurship which stands as impediment to getting quality jobs.

"Government should invest heavily in education. Educational institutions should redesign curriculums that are useful for transforming our youths to entrepreneurs and well equipped hands for future jobs".

While speaking on the role of religious organizations in nation building, he said that "Our religious organisations should stop giving our youths false hope and teach our youths virtues of hard work, practicality and dignity. Hypocrisy and extremism should have no place in the house of God.

"I urge us all to reverse these unacceptable and unsustainable trends. Nigeria, Cross-River State, Obubra and Etung in particular must empower her youths to play constructive, unifying and innovative roles and fully include us in the national development process. We should have adequate access to economic opportunities and decent livelihood".