Bukola Afeni
The Founder of Connected Development Hamzat Lawal has called on all Nigerians to contribute positively to the growth of the country in all different spheres of life, as the country marks its Democracy Day celebration.
He stated this at a press conference to launch CODE 2023 Annual report and press briefing to mark the democracy day celebration in Abuja.
He noted that Nigerians should reflect on different measures to make impact and sharpen democracy in the country .
“As CSOs we believe that all hope is not lost for the country. We can learn from our heroes in the past and keep striving to achieve the Nigeria of our dream.
“We want young people to seek for meaningful ways to contribute innovatively, rather than jetting out of the shores of the country”, he said.
According to the Founder of CODE, the organization will continue to take lofty strides in developing and shaping positive narratives at the community, state and national level especially in terms of accountability and governance.
” We have become ambassadors of change through the “Follow the Money ” movement which is in different African countries. Through all this laudable initiaves we are making maximum impact in the lives of average Nigerians.
The Director of Democracy and Governance of CODE Hon. Emmanuel Njoku lament the JAPA syndrome which has made many professionals to leave the shores of Nigeria .
“The trend of JAPA syndrome is on the increase and has become a distraction to a large number of Nigerian youths. Instead of contributing meaningfully to the development of the country, youths and young professionals are leaving the shores of the country on a daily basis.”
While speaking on the state of affairs in the country , he urged the Federal government to address the issue of minimum wage.
“The government is offering small minimum wage at a time when there is inflation and food insecurity in the country. Some farmers cannot access their farmland due to insecurity issues”.
He further called for deeper electoral reforms .
“Some of our citizens are not happy about electoral process in the country.We need commitment from our electoral bodies towards improving electioneering process in the country”, he said.
Hon Njoku also lamented the shrinking space in the country.
“Young people are not interested in activism and governance system. The youth need to come out and contribute in the area of governance. They are our hope and future leaders”, he said.
