Attitude of Successful Aramoko Men and Women towards Youth Unemployment

The topic of this piece would have been better reconstructed as attitude of Aramoko men and women towards Human Capital Development or youth unemployment. To know that there is a little problem with the topic , what is success? And who is a successful man or woman? Success is doing the ordinary things in an extraordinary way and the ability to sustain the aura ( Ilesanmi D.A 2009). Besides success without a successor, they say is no success then the question is: who are the successful Aramoko Men and Women? The answer may not be provided here. I will leave my readers to think about the answer themselves. This is not a pride; but for a right thinking person, the answer is known already. Man could be rich but unsuccessful; but he may be successful without being rich. For the former, the topic under discussion is apt and timely.

  Strictly speaking, as an economist, the demography of Aramoko-Ekiti coupled with dangerous politics of indifference played   against youth unemployment can be described as an invitation to economic and social anarchy. Forty percent (40%) of Aramoko between  ages 18 and 35 are youths who are already in the labour market looking for job that nobody is thinking of creating. The so-called successful men and women of the town prefer to be invited to a night show or discotheque where they will display their wealth to and lavish it on prostitutes to having some job created for our unemployed youths. Some use their wealth as a daggling carrot to catch their prey. And the innocent unemployed young ladies fall easily into their hands.

If this trend continues unabated, I am afraid criminality will get to a level where policemen can no longer confront armed robbers, except they do that through armored cars (God forbid) certainly, it has got to level where people are afraid of walking in their neighborhood because of fear of attack from armed robbers, mobile phone snatchers, shop raiders hungry and angry youths are threatening the so-called ‘successful’ men and women in the community.

  For any community like Aramoko – Ekiti to develop, it must be anchored in the development of human capital. Human capital development culminates in societal stability and development. If anyone intends to argue it out with me or disagree with me that the indifferent attitude of our successful men and women at Aramoko-Ekiti is symptomatic of what other communities in Nigeria or Ekiti experience. I would rather say that the assertion is otiose, backward- looking and anachronistic. We have some communities in Ekiti which are smaller and bigger in size and population that are the quintessence for human capital development and the youth employment. Let us take a look at Usi- Ekiti, as though we have many youth developers who are concerned mainly about how the unemployed youths are employed, using their divine position to assist their youths. Let us take Professor Babalola Borisade as a typical example. I mention this man because is a national figure like many of our men and women at Aramoko- Ekiti but a successful man of note. If we go to those places where Prof Babalola of Usi- Ekiti had worked thus far, Usi –Ekiti indigenes are many there through the help of their man for instance, at the Aviation ministry, federal ministry of Education, Power & steel, Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife and other federal parastatals and agencies, Usi –ekiti can boast of its indigenes. That is not all; this same man brought federal science Technical College to his country home at Usi. Let us go to FMC Ido –Ekiti Usi indigenes are many there. What about Afe Babalola of Ado-Ekiti, a literary icon, a philanthropic per excellent, a metaphor for youth development? Afe is a national figure like our ‘chief and chief (mrs)’ Ado-Ekiti youth benefited form his generosity; many Ado indigenes who are jobless were employed through him in various ministries, parastatals and agencies. Similarly, non natives are beneficiaries of his largesse, some of whom are our so-called ‘successful’ men and women. Let us take a look at Efon-Alaaye Ekiti, a neighboring town. Some of its successful men and women of note find places for their younger ones in the federal ministries, state ministries, and federal and state parastatals etc. For anyone to now say that our ‘successful’ men and women have done well in seeing to the betterment of their youths is not to be obvious.

   Today at Aramoko, our rich men and women though not successful, shirk their avowed responsibility to fight for the only thing they love. I know a man a national figure, who had served in various federal ministries parastatals and agencies as secretary, chairman, president, etc but to our dismay no single person can point to him at his community that he helped him for job. No wonder when Aramoko and any town are fighting for one particular thing, one ‘crown wearer’ will come out and more than ten ‘crown wearer’ will wage war against us from other town. It is a case of a sheer negative attitudinal complexion towards youth development and empowerment in our community. A man who wears caps like a crown though not a king. He controls everything that gets to the throne. He has houses in big cities of the country; he is very rich and well connected, literate but uneducated, knowledgeable but unwise. He finds it difficult to assist his community people in getting good jobs. He is nothing but a mere ‘chief’ that will never receive the applause and respect of his community people.

    As a student of history, the leader who lives abstemious life for the sake of common man continues to enjoy the respect of his people. But the leader who leaves the common man to his penury whilst he lives in an ivory tower and in opulence does not last and he never commands the respect of his people. Similarly, when you are in a place of authority and you refuse to help your people, by the time you leave the place, you will never command the respect and honour of your people.