The third Assembly of the Youth Parliament has been inaugurated by the Speaker, Oyo State House of Assembly, Hon. Joshua Olagunju Ojo as part of conscious efforts to encourage youths to get involved in decision making process in the state.
The inauguration ceremony was held at the House of Chiefs, Parliament Building, Oyo State House of Assembly Complex, Secretariat, Ibadan during the week.
While presenting his inaugural speech, Hon. Olagunju said that based on the provision of the 1999 constitution as amended, the role of youths in the decision making process, support of government’s policies as well as promotion of people-oriented and good governance cannot be over emphasized.
The Speaker described parliament as a powerful institution that champions the course of the people, adding that Youth Parliament is a replica of the representative function of the House of Assembly members in the state, where interests and demands of the constituents are canvassed and debated.
Commending the initiative of the Oyo State Agency for Youth Development for keying into youths’ development policy, Hon. Olagunju emphasized that youths, who make up the bulk of the total population of the country must always be at the fore front in engaging political leaders on critical issues of national interest.
Hon. Ojo, who was accompanied by the House Minority Leader, Hon. Akeem Ige and Hon. Fatai Adesina, enjoined the newly inaugurated parliamentarians to be good ambassadors of the state by always promoting and protecting the pace setter status which the state is known for in all their engagements.
He implored youths in the state to, at all times, shun every unethical behavior such as thugery as witnessed in the recently concluded general elections, where issues of electoral violence such as ballot boxes’ snatching and other electoral vices were perpetrated by the youth.
The state’s Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Barrister Yomi Oke, in his address delivered by Special Adviser to the Governor on Youth and Sports, Afeez Bolaji, disclosed that the present administration has been supporting and promoting youth agenda by giving them proper recognition as principal stakeholders and foremost drivers of the nation’s growth and development.
He pointed out programmes like Youth Empowerment Scheme of Oyo State (YES-O), Oyo Ajumose Business Leadership and Entrepreneur (Oyo-Able) Scheme, OYO NISE, OYO LEKO as major strategic and systematic youth empowerment programmes embarked upon by the state to ensure that youths are sufficiently equipped to compete with counterparts from the larger world.
Bolaji Afeez commended the federal government’s initiative for approving the laudable youth programme which gives them the opportunity to contribute their quota in the decision making process both at the state and federal levels.
Meanwhile, at the first proceeding of the newly inaugurated Youth Parliament, members have elected Hon. Adegoke Abayomi from Ogbomoso South state constituency and Hon. Taoheed Adebayo from Irepo/Olorunsogo state constituency as Speaker and Deputy Speaker respectively.
The inauguration was also witnessed by the Iyaloja of Ibadan land, Alhaja Iswat Ameringun and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Youth and Social Development, Alhaja Agboola Rolake.
Packaged by Kunle Gazali
