Unemployment, ignorance, desperation and hunger marched on the streets of Uyo today. If the state government created the hundreds of thousands of jobs it promised through industrialization, where would the organizers find able bodied young men and women to march just to earn a pittance?
Some Akwa Ibom commentators are quick to remember President Buhari's promises but they will never remember that Governor Udom Emmanuel promised never to dehumanize Akwa Ibom youths through the kind thing we witnessed today.
I saw quite a number of familiar youths march from Udo Udoma Avenue to Wellington Bassey Way. Sincerely, it was a heart rending sight. Some of the young men in the procession are in their 40s and 50s. Would the organisers of this march play this ignoble and demeaning role at this age?
Why do we mock the poor?
As I witnessed the march, it dawned on me that it could be a deliberate policy of the state government to ensure a substantial number of youths remain poor and unemployed. Otherwise, who would leave his job or business to engage in a solidarity march on a Friday morning?
Does the Governor really believe all the marching youths are his supporters? It will take a miracle for that to be the case. I saw among the youths,well known indigenes of Urueoffong/Oruko LGA.
Some are jobless children of retirees whose parents retired many years ago without being paid gratuities by the state government. It can only take a miracle for a serving civil servant, pensioner and their relations to take that stress for the Governor.
I'm sure today's march was a fortuitous presentation of the Governor's scorecard on industrialization and job creation. I'm sure, the Governor, a productive and gainfully employed man from his twenties was uncomfortable seeing that number of unemployed youths from just one out of the three senatorial districts of the State.
I'm sure the organizers intended to showcase their political clout to the Governor. But they ended up proving the level of unemployment in an industrialized state.
Truth is, if there were more buses, more youths would hop in. Some cannot afford to pay their way to their state capital. Why won't they take advantage of free transportation? Others marched expecting both the Governor and the organizers to reward their sweat with some cash. Whether their expectations were met or not will affect the outcome of the 2019 election to an extent.
Ultimately, the march was largely a day's job for the unemployed young people. They did it just the same way they would have worked in a construction site if there was any project going on in their neighbourhood. Believe me, that march has little or nothing to do with genuine political support. It was just a show of political wizardry by the organizers and an income earning opportunity for most of the youths. The march wasn't for Governor Udom Emmanuel.
I earnestly do not see any wisdom in transporting youths from faraway Eket Senatorial District to march in Uyo to prove their support for their Governor. When are we moving away from this kind of barbarism in the name of politics?
Why couldn't they march in their respective villages?
Please let's respect our youths even if state enabled poverty has stripped them of every sense of self worth and dignity.
Omen Bassey.
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