The Commander, 14 Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Ohafia Brig.Gen Olusola Diya has decried Abia youths refusal to fill their quota for military training which attitude would be disadvantageous to the state.
Diya said this during a one-day sensitization programme organized by the Abia State Office of National Orientation Agency (NOA) at Umuahia South LGA Secretariat on Tuesday.
The commander spoke on the issues of dress code and abuse of substances by youths in the state, reports News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
He decried what he claimed as the “penchant for girls to dress like boys and walking like them and boys dressing like girls and acting like them in Abia”.
“The greatest issue the average Easterner has is lack of forgiveness; they are bringing up issues that happened in 1967. What has that got to do with the young man that was trained in the army three years ago?
“Now we are recruiting and every state is entitled to 170 candidates that will go for training on the 3rd of January.
“As we speak, Abia state does not have up to 113 candidates out of 170 meanwhile other states have thousands they are screening to get the fittest 170.
“If Abia goes to the army depot with 100, what will happen to their balance of 70? he queried.
He said other states with higher number of candidates will fill Abia’s quota and tomorrow they will say every senior army officer is from other tribes that is not Igbo.
He said that the South East is not well represented in the military and the paramilitary, and urged them to disabuse their minds of issues of the past and forget hallucinating about things that will never come.
“It is a shame that a group of people will gather their lives savings to sponsor rubbish that will never happen”, Diya said.
He called on the South East not to initiate another trouble because Nigeria is yet to recover from the effect of what happened in 1967.
Diya, who was represented by Lt. Col Emmanuel Ukhun, urged South East people to forget the hurts of the civil war in order to forge ahead.
Earlier, the State Director National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mrs Regina Iroha said the sensitization programme was planned to cover security awareness, discouraging get-rich-quick syndrome, and World Human Rights Day.
She called for collective action that would unite the country and bring the desired transformation to it.
Iroha urged Nigerians to be committed in the things that would make the country great by building a united, peaceful and progressive society.
The Chairman, Umuahia South Traditional Rulers Council, The Avo Ukwu II of Avodim, His Royal Majesty, Eze Boniface Onyemachi, said the sensitization on discouraging get-rich-quick syndrome was timely.
He said that the programme which targeted youths was important as their situation such as joblessness was driving many into unrestrained quests for money which is dangerous.
Onyemachi who urged the government to provide jobs for the youths to discourage vices, thanked the organizers of the event while declaring it open.
The Local Government Chairman of Umuahia South, Mr Chinedu Enwereuzo said the sensitization programme would help restore values needed to make the Nigerian society progressive.
He expressed gladness over the event and the turnout of participants and urged them to share the knowledge they would gain with others.
The chairman urged Nigerians especially youths, to always do what is right adding that working and saving would certainly lead to clean wealth without regrets.
The Director-general, National Orientation Agency, Mr Lanre Issa-Onilu said government had increased funding and improved equipment to secure Nigerians.
He said that security begins from the home and urged Nigerians to be vigilant and report security challenges and breaches.
He counseled parents to discourage get-rich-quick activities of their children by condemning such and speaking up against it.
The NOA DG urged citizens to criminalize fraudulent practices and reject shortcut to wealth.
Issa-Onilu who was represented by Mrs Theresa Maduekwe, the Director, Public Enlightenment and Mass Mobilization (NOA) said government was expanding legal frameworks to improve human rights of citizens.
About the Author
