ODAHIEKWU OGUNDE, Yenagoa
The Vice Chancellor, Bayelsa State Medical University, Prof Ebitimitula Etebu has said that no society can develop without the involvement of the youths.
He said this on Saturday during the 3rd Democracy Day Lecture organised by the Office of the Special Adviser to Bayelsa State Governor on Student Affairs to mark this year’s Democracy Day in Yenagoa.
Etebu also urged youths to dedicate their minds to science and technology as the way forward, saying that it would enable them to become useful to society.
He said that the Bayelsa government had established a medical university to train the youths in the medical field.
Etebu said: “We are training doctors, nurses, lab scientists, dental technologists, physiotherapists, community health medical doctors, among others.
He stated: “Bayelsa youths should dedicate their minds to science and technology as the way forward. That will enable them to become useful to society.
“I urge you people to work hard and not always wanting to take short cuts which can never be better for the society at large.”
Also speaking, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Student Affairs, Hon. Atti Joshua Moses, asked youths in the state to always venture into meaningful activities that will better their tomorrow.
Moses said the youth in the state and Nigeria at large should avoid tendencies that were capable of tarnishing their image but rather they should think within the positive box for the betterment of the society and mankind.
According to him, youths are expected to expand their knowledge base from the lecture and whatever they might have acquired before now.
Speaking on the theme of this year’s edition, ‘The Role of Science, Communication and Technology in Youths Development’, Moses said the emerging leaders conference is an annual event targeted at building the intellectual capacity of the teaming students and youths, and it is held on every Democracy Day.
In her contribution, Deputy Director General, Center For Women Development, Bayelsa State, Mrs Juliet Pulu, said the youth needed to seek knowledge and acquire skills in order for them to be useful to themselves and the society.
She urged the youths in Bayelsa to key into the technology world and maximize every opportunity that comes their ways.
She stated: “You must have a vision and must be passionate about it if you want to develop yourselves. If you are not into anything, definitely you will channel your energy to other negative tendencies that might destroy your future.
“Our young people today are very understanding, very productive and active because they have the energy to produce.”
In his lecture, the first speaker, Elvis Donkemezuo, Chairman of Bayelsa State Business Council, who spoke on ‘The Impact of Modern Innovation in Science Communication and Technology on Youths Development,’ suggested that youths should focus more on ideas that would create incomes for them and better their lots.
Donkenmezuo highlighted some of the areas the youths could gain knowledge from such as visual editing and design, web design, branding, user experience design, digital marketing, front end development, world press development, python web application development and data analysis.
He said the youth could do better in any of those areas instead of engaging in meaningless ventures that would not help their future.
He also urged the government to create a platform for the youth to excel in their chosen career and ensure the ease of doing business in the state.