By Christiana Ekpa
Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Youths in Parliament, Hon. Olamijuwonlo Alao-Akala on Thursday assured Nigerians of the House resolve to put Nigeria back on the world map.
Hon. Alao-Akala who gave the assurance during the inauguration of the Committee, unveiled plans to hold the first annual youths in Parliament conference with a view to inform and educate harmonious relationship among youths in Parliament across the country.
According to him, the Committee in line with the provisions of the 10th Assembly’s Standing Rules is saddled with the responsibility of “initiating good policies on parliamentarian research and documentation and ensuring efficient databank of youths in national and state Assemblies; oversight and monitoring of youths in Parliament; ensuring harmonious relationship between the young legislators in the national and state Assemblies.”
The Committee is also expected to initiate and organize national and international conference, workshops and other fora for the education of youths in Parliament, recommend to the House the formation of any youth Parliamentary groups, making recommendations on desirability of the House sending youth delegation to specific Inter-Parliamentarian events, among others.
While noting that those who voted for youths in Parliament cut across all ages, he assured that the young legislators will put at the front burner issues bothering on national development
“We represent high demographic of people which is the youth and they are looking up to us that the people we voted for are youths and what are they going to do? How are they representing us well? I keep telling them that only the youths didn’t vote for us we represent a very large community.”
While disclosing the Committee’s plans to organise conferences for young Parliamentarians at the State Houses of Assemblies across the 36 States of the Federation, he said: “We are Reps with a difference, Nigeria should know that we are ready to put Nigeria back on the map both economically, infrastructural wise and every way possible.
“Change will not come if we wait for some other persons, or we wait for some other time. We are the ones we have been waiting for, we are the change that we seek, according to the President of United States, Obama.
“We are the change that we seek, nobody will come and do it for us.”
In his remarks, Hon. Ojotu Ojeme (PDP-Benue) who observed that young Parliamentarians have enormous opportunities ahead, noted that: “There are so many people that struggled to be in the National Assembly that struggle for the whole of their lives to achieve this.
“Some get to this place when they are old enough to be our grandfather. And then we have achieved this in the early stage of our lives. We should walk with our shoulder very high and the way we can demonstrate how much God has done for us is to come to this Committee and give our best and we should be proud to tell Nigerians that we are youths.”
