Chief Joseph Erico Ameh, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant in Kogi State, has lamented the high rate of unemployment and moral decadence among the youths of the state.
Ameh, who was speaking to members of the Vanguard for Good Governance during a stakeholders’ meeting in Lagos on Thursday, said the high rate of unemployment in Kogi State had become worrisome.
He also lamented the high salary arrears of about 20 months being owed to the state’s workers, which he said had caused a lot of poverty and uncertainties of lives in the state.
Ameh maintained that several workers were also sacked for no cogent reasons without paying their entitlements, making their lives worse.
He said: “Since the Yahaya Bello administration, Kogi has been in the news not for good, but bad. Civil servants commit suicide almost fortnightly as a result of dashed hopes as they have no other means of livelihood.
“Kogi is a civil service state with several untapped mineral resources due to maladministration and lack of focus on the part of the state and total neglect by the Federal Government.
“This has brought a graphical drop in the educational sector. For instance, the federal government declared a state of emergency in the education sector. This is a welcome development that should have started from Kogi where primary schools have remained closed since the inception of the Bello administration.”
Ameh maintained that this development had led to the springing up of private schools, which demand school fees which parents could not afford due to backlog of salaries owed them.
He also stated that Kogi youths were very industrious and would do any job to sustain themselves and their families rather than stealing, lamenting that recently the situation had nosedives as an idle hand is a devil’s workshop.
“Now, youths have taken to crimes and criminality because of government’s neglect. If I am given the opportunity to govern Kogi State, my pedigree as a mass employer of labour and security expert, I will do everything within my power to ensure that our youths are returned to the right part, while crimes will be checked.
“There will be the Youth Empowerment Scheme (YES) in Kogi State to take care of the youths and women and empower them for self-sustenance. I will also deal with issues of education and agriculture. If these things are taken care of, they will drastically reduce the rate of unemployment as a lot of people will be gainfully employed,” Ameh stated.
Credit: Daily Independent
