Rotary President, Muyiwa Fajimi Calls for Renewed Spirit in Peace Building, Partners NSCPC ~ Abamiedaablog

 

Rotary Club Ibara GRA in partnership with the Ogun State chapter of National School Crime Prevention Corps, NSCPC held a conference to promote peace education among the youths and raise awareness towards social actions among young people.

The event, which came under the theme, ‘Building Peace and Conflict Prevention in Abeokuta yesterday was aimed to inspire and equip young people with the knowledge and skills to promote peace and transform in both their personal and social lives, to become more resilient and security conscious individuals, and then step towards a wider peace-building process in their immediate communities.

Speaking at the event, the President of the Club, Rotarian Muyiwa Fajimi amidst his team of executive and members of the Club, called on all stakeholders to support the activities of Corporate Social Organisations in the promotion of peace and conflict prevention.

Fajimi said the partnership with NSCPC was predicated upon the fact that the foundation of a Nation's development is built on the quest for national peace and security, adding that “any organisation that is working in that space, promoting peace and tranquillity, peace and security, pushing the narrative of conflict prevention and resolution as well as peace building will be of interest to Rotary Club Ibara GRA.”

Highlighting the essential roles of young people in peace building and conflict prevention, Fajimi noted that young people should be involved in the process of preventing violence, adding that the process of peace building should be participatory and involve everyone, especially the young people who are mostly at the front line of it.

According to him, "maintaining peace in our society is not the sole responsibility of the government, it requires our collective efforts to make it happen. No one is safe until all of us are safe.

"No Nation can thrive in the absence of peace, because a peaceful society encourages development in all sectors. Our society is in increasing need of change agents, especially among students of high school who shall be holding the torch of leadership in the country soon".

He urged the participants to be agents of peace and purveyors of good news, and continue to advance an atmosphere of lasting peace in Ogun State and Nigeria at large.

In his remarks, the guest speaker and State Vice Chairman of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, Comrade Okeleye Olarotimi appealed to young Nigerians to eschew every form of violence and resist any attempt to recruit themselves to perpetrate trouble.

Comrade Okeleye, therefore, called on the youths to channel their youthful energies and strength, to enhance their creativity, potential, their networking ability, skills towards building a culture of peace in their space.

Speaking on the need for everyone in the society to adopt safety measures when dealing with crime cases, the state Commandant of NSCPC, Olawale Ige emphasised his commitment to ensuring peace and stability in all schools in the state.

Commandant Ige listed a raft of measures undertaken by NSCPC to ensure that normalcy returns to schools where students have exhibited acts of violence in different forms.

He further stressed the need for youths not to allow themselves to be used by anyone to perpetuate violence, and advised that, "to become a full participants in the social, cultural, economic, and political future of the society, the culture of peace and conflict prevention must be promoted in the minds of young people in Nigeria".

Speaking earlier, the Provost, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence College of Science and Management, Commandant Awosusi Raphael affirmed that the conference which had young people between the ages of 15 and 25 in attendance would enable them become stronger leaders, equip them with skills to transform conflict into peace and in actualizing self-development goals anywhere.

Commandant Awosusi encouraged the participants to cultivate the culture of peace, whether at home, an association of gatherings and their communities, while putting thier talents together to promote peace in Nigeria.

Also, the Ogun State Cordinator, Child Protection Network, Soleye Akingbade, spoke on Young leaders for peace leadership development, adding that peace is essential in the growth and development of any country. 

While explaining that peace has always been among humanity’s highest values, he urged the participants to be change agents and report suspicious acts to the authorities whether at school or the larger society.

Enumerating the benefits of a peaceful society, Executive Director, International Community for Healthy Alternative to Drugs (ICHAD Foundation), Okey Davids charged young Nigerians to shun the use of drugs. He said that the use of drugs and violence are like siamese twins, and that the health hazards of drug use is far greater than the immediate pleasure it gives.

Davids highlighted his experience with young people who have used drugs, and appealed to the participants to avoid such acts, and bring them to the knowledge of the authority when their peers engage in it.

On his part, a student of Saje High School, Abeokuta, Dosumu Abel expressed delight at the concept of the conference, noting that the highlights shared on the importance of youth people in building peace was an eye opener to many of them, adding that peace in the society should always be deliberately promoted as explained by all speakers at the conference.

The conference also had students from different secondary schools in attendance, as well as representatives from the government and key stakeholders from different security and peace building organizations.