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By Sunday Ani
Pan Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, US chapter, has called on the President Bola Tinubu-led administration and the 36 state governors to, as a matter of urgency, address the alarming rate at which youths were taking to crimes as a new way of life.
The group insisted that the country was witnessing increased incidents of armed robbery, kidnapping, drug abuse, and ritual killings for pecuniary reasons and had become a cause for worry.
In a statement, President of the chapter, Akindutire Durojaiye, stressed that the group would not fold its hands and watch some undesirable elements in society in pursuit of an ostentatious lifestyle mislead youths to self-destruct.
The statement read in parts: “We acknowledge that things are hard for the generality of the people due to the economic downturn of the country. Also, the poor economic situation and broken value system are some of the factors responsible for this malaise.
“We call on the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on this problem before it degenerates or becomes our new normal. Currently, the perpetrators are becoming emboldened and more daring in their evil acts as they flaunt the proceeds of their crimes without fear of being questioned.
“This is evident in the lavish display of their inexplicable wealth and ostentatious lifestyles at social gatherings, including on campuses of tertiary institutions and social media.
“Now, with Christmas festivities and New Year celebrations fast approaching, the quest for money increases, and so is the temptation for crime. Therefore, we call on the South West state governors to liaise with the Federal Government to deploy the state security architecture during this period and after.
“As a group, we in Afenifere will not fold our hands and watch some undesirable elements in our society in pursuit of an ostentatious lifestyle mislead our youths to self-destruct. We believe that if the South West becomes uncomfortable for these criminals, other state governors would follow suit and subsequently paralyse their nefarious activities across the states and possibly run them out of the country for good.
“Because we know this effort cannot be done by the government alone, we are extending this clarion call to all our religious leaders and hope that they will tell their clerics to start admonishing their congregants to shun ostentatious and questionable lifestyles.
“We specifically want to appeal to our religious leaders to use their sermons and messages to encourage parents to return to teaching their children and wards family values, including morals, integrity, moderation, hard work, and contentment. There is no doubt that if our children and wards are encouraged to imbibe these virtues, their minds will be reshaped to focus on legitimate activities and means of livelihood instead of crimes.
“We are mindful of the Federal Government’s ban on spraying of money in public, which is a welcome development and a right step in the right direction, and we commend them for this. But, as we prepare for the yuletide season, we appeal to the police to beef up security in society for safe travel, commuting, and gathering.
“More importantly, we call on the National Orientation Agency of Nigeria to organise a series of awareness campaigns against drug abuse, ritual killings, and get-rich-quick schemes to discourage the perpetrators or potential criminals. These campaigns should run constantly on print, electronic, and social media for effectiveness.”
