Obasanjo Has A Message For Youth |MUST READ

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Thursday urged Nigerian youths to imbibe good leadership qualities in the overall interest of the country.

He stated this just as the Centre for Human Security of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library inaugurated  the leadership training of 408 primary school head boys and head girls drawn from Lagos, Ogun and Oyo states.

Obasanjo advised the pupils to always embrace high standard in order to drive the country towards sustainable development.

The former president also called for adequate reward for teachers to enable them to discharge their duties effectively and impart positive knowledge on the future leaders of the country.

He expressed worry over the dearth of quality leadership in many African countries, adding that it had become imperative to breed future leaders by imparting the younger ones with a deep sense of patriotism.

Obasanjo highlighted what he described as “20 golden rules for young leaders” and asked them to strive to live by them.

He said, “You must always keep your promises, set realistic goals, be good team players and be courageous when making decisions.

“These 20 golden rules are not by any means exhaustive. But if you imbibe and internalise them while you are young, they will stand you in good stead throughout your life.

“You cannot be a good leader if you don’t set good examples. As a leader, your job is to lead and the art of leading is showing example.”

Obasanjo also commended teachers for their significant role in moulding the lives of the younger ones.

“The most dedicated job of protecting and securing lives is the work of our teachers.  When I became president of Nigeria, I changed the orientation that teachers’ rewards are in heaven. I believe they should have a little bit of that on earth and they can earn the balance in heaven,” he said.

Earlier, the Director of the centre, Prof. Peter Okebukola, said the training would prepare pupils in the basic education system for current and future leadership roles.

Okebukola said over 200,000 youths from 55 African countries would benefit from leadership training programmes.

==========Punch