By Peter Usman
Abuja (Nigeria) – To complement government obligations in job creation, a member of the National Assembly, Sergius Ose Ogun has urged wealthy Nigerians including the political class to create jobs for the teeming unemployed youths roaming the street .
The lawmaker represents Esan North and South East Federal Constituency of Edo State, South – South of the country.
In an interview with AFRICA PRIME NEWS at the National Assembly complex in Abuja, Ogun observed that creating jobs for the youths, especially in the rural areas, would discourage rural-urban drift .
Ose Ogun asserted that there is an urgent need to industrialize the rural areas across the country so that, youths after finishing school , could equally remain and work in the rural areas and live a comfortable life.
The law maker also spoke of the need to carry everybody along in one way or the other through job creation so as to reduce poverty in the rural areas, adding that if people are engaged in doing something, the issue of agitation here and there would be reduced.
“I use to say this that Government cannot do it alone, we need to intervene in this matter, if government come to meet you in the midway, all well and good. We have left so many people behind in this country and that is why we are having some of these agitations”, he said.
Ose Ogun who applauded the present Assembly for excellent performance, said that it has broken records, except that they have some challenges in the area of delivering constituency projects due to lack of fund to implement the budget.
“Now, 2016 budget was partially executed and as I am talking to you now, we have projects in my constituency that were of 2016 and nothing has been done about it. In 2017; there was no intervention fund for me to deliver to my constituency”.
The lawmaker, however disclosed that his 2016 intervention project was agriculture, which he said , 200 youths from his constituency have been engaged on 100 hectares of land saying that they are presently doing wonderfully well.
“As I speak to you now, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture is doing feeder road to that farm and by the grace of God, we will make solar light available to that farm. We are also trying to engage another 210 youths on fish farming and we are looking at 100 hectares of land to execute that”
Ogun, who enumerated some of the projects in his constituency, revealed that he has been providing medical assistance to the people with various health challenges using medical outreach in Utako and Ugboha villages free, saying he has been doing this consistently for over 5 years.
“My constituency has the highest number of people going to Libya, even my state in particular. So my dream is to stem that. But if you tell them not to go, what will be the alternative for them? You have to engage them back home and that is why I am throwing all these and by the grace of God, we are achieving positive results” he said.
