Yesterday, Vice President Kashim Shettima blamed the vandalism of infrastructure and looting of public/private facilities in some parts of the North by protesters, on poor leadership, corruption and poverty in the region.
The vice president said toleration of the social vices for too long resulted in the breeding of a new crop of generation without fear of God and respect for the laws of the land by those who participated in the nationwide protests against economic hardship.
Shettima, who noted that the accumulation of too many problems accounted for the destruction of lives and property, admitted the need for a complete overhaul of the system.
The vice president spoke at the graduation ceremony of 20 indigent pupils of Hau’wa Memorial School (HMS), owned by AMA Foundation, where he was represented by his Special Adviser on Political Matters, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmad.
He said: “For too long we have tolerated poverty, corruption, poor leadership and we can see the result, a generation that has come up that has no respect for God, for the law of the land, for the leadership and our values.”
The vice president assured that the Federal Government, led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will make Nigeria work so that future generations will benefit just like past generations benefited for the legacies of the Sardauna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello.
He said: “In the last two weeks, the country has gone through difficult times mostly led by the youth, young people who are angry because they are hungry, young people who are angry because they do not see any prospects in becoming better than they are, young people who think government does not care about them, young people who have no respect for any authority in this country because they think every authority has let them down.
“Young people who are not afraid of hunger, not afraid of their parents, they are not afraid of the police, the army or anybody because they believe this country belongs to those who can drag and run, young Nigerians believe Nigeria is free for all.
“We created this situation, generations like ours, but we did not inherit it. The people who built Nigeria before our lives worked very hard and made sacrifices and tried to build a country through honesty and hard work.”
