ODAHIEKWU OGUNDE, Yenagoa
Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State has cautioned graduates of technical colleges in the state not to sell starter packs provided by the state government in order for them to become self-reliant entrepreneurs.
Diri gave the warning in Yenagoa, the state capital, during the presentation of business start-up items to 400 graduates of the state-owned technical colleges, a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Alabrah, said on Wednesday.
He also directed the Commissioner for Education, Gentle Emelah, to monitor the beneficiaries in order to achieve the goals for which the science and technical colleges were set up.
Diri described the graduates as torch bearers of his administration, who would form the critical mass of skilled manpower in the state and take charge of the local economy.
He said: “As we are giving out these starter packs, please do not go and sell them. If you sell them, you will be selling the seed that has been planted in your life.
“You are expected to nurture that seed and watch it grow up and bear fruits. It is the fruit you will harvest.”
He expressed concern that indigenes of the state do not control the local economy, saying his administration was poised to change that narrative by equipping young Bayelsans with the necessary skills in various fields.
He noted: “There is a general shift from certificate education across the world towards science and technical education. Such persons in the latter category are the ones that are becoming millionaires and billionaires.
“You are the torch bearers of entrepreneurship in Bayelsa State. With the skills you have acquired, you are no longer going to seek for jobs. Rather than become employees, you are now going to be employers of labour.”
He also urged the graduates to be the mouthpiece of the administration and defend its policies and programmes.
He said the government will complete and equip all the technical colleges in the state.
“We want to change that mindset of people depending on handouts from politicians. In the world today, most of those doing well are the young people. We want to see the young people of Bayelsa change our state for us. So make a positive and good use of the starter packs,” he added.
In his remarks, the Commissioner for Education, Gentle Emelah, said the starter packs consist of a complete set of tools to start out a business for each beneficiary in eleven different trade areas.
They comprise catering, plumbing, dress making, marine diesel/petrol mechanics, building technology/draughtsmanship and electrical installations.
Others are computer/bookkeeping, welding and fabrication, hairdressing, motor vehicle mechanics and mechanical engineering.
Emelah said by meeting the objectives of the government’s position statement on the science and technology education policy, the government would have a continuously refreshed pool of skilled workforce ready to address challenges.