28/08/2016
THE O**Y OF CONGRESS POSTPONEMENT AND THE PROBLEM OF NATIONAL YOUTH COUNCIL OF NIGERIA (NYCN)- WILL IT EVER END?
Godspower Igwe, 28/08/2016
INTRODUCTION
Two times, the National Youth Council of Nigeria NYCN Election was fixed for Port Harcourt and cancelled just like the infamous PDP Conventions 1 & 2, reason being that the organization have some legal hurdles to defeat bothering on how illegally the former federal government handled the National Youth Council of Nigeria NYCN; it will be apt to mention here that all through the past five years, NYCN has been enmeshed in one court case or the other which hitherto was the evil machinations of the then PDP federal government that was bent on 'owning' the youth body so as to control it ahead of successive general elections.
A SURGICAL SEVERANCE FROM STATUS QUO
There was a sigh of relief around 2012, when a young Nigerian entrepreneur, scholar and Democrat, Abdullahi Abdulmajeed, a Kaduna-born Amadu Bello University graduate came into the scene to liberate the 'imprisoned' National Youth Council of Nigeria. Of course, some of us, non-partisan youth leaders across the length and breadth of Nigeria obliged to work with this very young Mandela of our time, Abdullahi Abdulmajeed aka "Majeed" or "Abdul". Nigerian youths were determined and consequently elected Majeed in Niger State after a keenly contested democratic election exercise at the UK Bello Arts Theatre, Minna 21st to 24th August, 2013.
The election, adjudged to be the first most credible, democratic and transparent NYCN Congresses, had 32 State NYCN Chairmen, 55 Voluntary Youth Organizations, International Observers, the Press, and the relevant Nigerian Security Agencies, led by the Police in attendance.
It will be necessary to quote the very words of the then Governor of Niger State, Babangida Aliyu, who had the youth delegates in audience during a courtesy call on the Chief Executive at Government House, Minna:
"In my many years of experience and after the era of the great sages, Sarduana, Zik, Awos, and those youths who championed national causes, today marks an historical reminder to me that Nigeria still have young patriots with zeal to further the unity of this great country...".
The above was the spirit which enveloped the process that midwifed the enthronement of Abdullahi Abdulmajeed, when he defeated his youth compatriots, Pastor Success Jack, from Niger Delta and Hon. Emeka Yellow from South East.
AND THE DEMON SET IN
From Minna, we got set for Abuja, the headquarters of the NYCN. The resolute National President of the NYCN unarguably, was set to do the job he had always done awesomely; leadership and direction to over 70million directionless youths of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Our job have started only for a while and how regrettably, this young man, Majeed was made to confront an avalanche of Court Orders/Verdicts from those demons who have "ab initio" been known as "youth-owners", 'youth-political jobbers", "youth elders", "forever youths", and more gruesomely, "PDP Youths" and "Opposition Youths" as it were. To cut the long story short, these demons ensured they secure a "Court Injunction" setting aside Majeed's Cabinet and calling for a "Unity Congress" to be hosted in Abuja.
Abdullahi Abdulmajeed, being the only legitimate National President known to the Laws of the land continued with his job along with members of his cabinet. He also represented the youth constituency at the one-time Jonathan Conference also called CONFAB.
WHY CONGRESS CANCELLATION AND POSTPONEMENT SHALL CONTINUE
Because of the evil manipulations and intent of some political allies to hijack the NYCN as at then, the court order by the youth demons managed to have its way and today we have one Mr. Ugochinyere declaring himself NYCN President after a world press conference held in Agura hotel in Abuja two years into Abdullahi Abdulmajeed's legitimate tenure as NYCN President- no thanks to the draconian efforts of the youth demons.
Since illegality can never prevail on legality, the situation shall continue to be cyclical; these directionless youths shall continue to warble in confusion, thereby engaging in one imbroglio or the other until they come to realization that they are the cause of their problems.
The leadership of NYCN in the garden and oil city of Port Harcourt, a city, which in recent times has assumed a free harlot for sundry national and global events, is enmeshed in a serious judicial battle and it will only confirm how unlawful these demons are, to ignore this and attempt for the third time the hosting of NYCN Congress- it will be illegal and shall further add to the good image of Nyesom Wike PDP led Rivers State Government, while exposing to the world the kind of youths this government tolerate and the type of agenda bandied by the Rivers State Ministry of Youth Development.
ANY WAY OUT?
There is no known human case that has no solution;
1. The solution is not in running to Port Harcourt for the third time for a Congress- the Port Harcourt handlers of NYCN are a product of illegality.
2. The botched Unity Congress of Abuja shall continue to be botched until truth prevails.
3. The Ugochinyere led NYCN that operates from the office of the Senate President at the National Assembly is a product of gross injustice.
4. The Abdullahi Abdulmajeed led NYCN, an innocent baby of our tireless effort at righting the wrongs meted against 70 million of Nigeria's population deserves justice.
CONCLUSION
1. Federal Ministry of Youth Development as led by Mr. Solomon Dalong, as a matter of Urgent National Concern, should call all stakeholders to a dialogue.
2. On the dialogue table, recognition should be given to Abdullahi Abdulmajeed as the only legitimate NYCN President known to Nigerian Youths.
3. Mr. Dalong should deliberately deploy official powers to warn the youth demons (most of these are his friends) to stay off from NYCN affairs.
4. Cause therefrom a path towards a National Congress, where Majeed should be given a window whether to re-test his popular mandate or pave way for other like minds in a lawful electoral contest.
Anything short of the above, let them like, call for NYCN Congress in Port Harcourt, Abuja or Eleme, my hometown, for one million times, we shall end up producing one million NYCN Presidents, while Abdullahi Abdulmajeed continues to remain the only authentic non-partisanly elected NYCN National President known to Law and sane minds and we doubt the current federal government of Nigeria is lawless to give credence to illegalities.
God bless the NYCN!
God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria!
Godspower Igwe,
who was Delegate No. 949 at the Minna Niger Congress of 2013, hails from Rivers State and is Special Adviser on Media/South South Campaign DG to Comr. Abdullahi Abdulmajeed.
08/01/2026
30/06/2017
20/10/2016