I have been doing a lot of borrowing lately. Like the title of this article which was borrowed from Professor Wole Soyinka’s 2007 book of almost the same title, I recently borrowed songs from Etienne T Boy and Faze, proverbs from Chinua Achebe and even quotes from Sun Tzu. The image at the top of this article was similarly borrowed from the artistic collection of Andrew James. If you are of the opinion that I am becoming a ‘borrow pose’ please forgive me. It is a sign of the time. We are in a depressed economy and people are advised to borrow as much as they can when the economy is depressed. So my beautiful people, I am only heeding economic advise.

The appointment of Senator Olabiyi Durojaye, an eighty-three years old man as Chairman of the National Communications Commission (NCC) generated a lot of interest in the past week especially in the social media. In one instance, an agitated youth accused President Buhari of bringing back our ancestors instead of bringing back our girls. The noise was especially loud among youths who are predominantly not qualified for the position for which elder Durojaye was head hunted. I really wonder what is wrong with the youths of these days. Why are they developing long throat over old peoples ‘goro’ (Kolanut)?  Didn’t their parents teach them that it is an aberration for children to salivate at the sight of ‘obi agba’ (old peoples kolanut? The position of chairman of NCC is meant for old people now! The youths should be content with taking charge of the lower chamber of the National Assembly where they can pad and (un)pad budgets as they desire. NCC is too vital to be handed over to the youths who may not understand how to speak incantations to the digital spectrum.

I am not one to question Mr. President for his actions. I believe he meant well. Perhaps he did not see Senator Durojaye’s age in the resume presented to him. Perhaps he assumed rightly that he needed a matured man in that position so as to avoid a conflict between the Chairman of the board and the Vice Chairman who doubles as the CEO. Perhaps the thinking is that a younger and more virile person would not be content with being a notional head of a ‘lucrative’ entity like the NCC. In any case, if a man is invited to dinner because the host does not know the state of the guest’s belly, the guest knowing that his stomach is full should be wise enough to politely refuse the invitation. In my view the onus rests on our distinguished Senator to say he has had enough.

Jokes aside, this case epitomizes one of the problems of our country…the greed of the older generation. When is it really enough? In some other realms an eighty-three years old man would reject such appointment and request that it be given to one of his children.  I am almost certain that the Distinguished Senator has children who are well into there forties and fifties. If he is accepting an appointment at his age, when will he recommend these children for appointment? This case calls to question the judgment of some of our elder statesmen. At what point do they say enough is enough? What are they doing to train their children to take over the rein of leadership?

One of the fallacies holding back the youth is the fallacy of youths being leaders of tomorrow. It is a fallacy that allows our people to remain perpetual youths until they enter the grave. It is the reason we encounter youths who are well into there fifties (in a country with average life expectancy of fifty-seven years) whereas the United Nation’s definition of youth is someone between the ages of fifteen and twenty-four. My dear countrymen and women, if at forty years of age someone calls you a youth, you should know that you are being fooled. And if you accept being a youth at forty then you are fooling yourself. Remember the saying that a fool at forty is a fool forever.

Youths are not leaders of tomorrow. For as long as we have not changed the definition of Leadership as ‘the ability to influence and give direction’, then the youths are today’s leaders because they influence a lot of actions now. Leadership is not the same as a traditional stool that is inherited but an activity that measures vision and capacity to influence others irrespective of age or gender. So at what point are we going to realize that the productive years of our citizenry are being allowed to waste because of the erroneous belief that youths are leaders of tomorrow? At what age does youth start or end in Nigeria? Where does today ends and tomorrow starts from? At what point are we going to give overgrown adults erroneously regarded as youths a chance to take responsibility? If the fear is that the youths and young adults would make mistakes, please let them make it. Practice they say makes for perfection.

The youths of Nigeria can no longer afford to dwell on the expectation of tomorrow’s leadership. That tomorrow may never come with elders like Durojaye still around to take even tomorrow’s leadership away from them.  Today is the time for youths to position themselves for leadership in all spheres of national activities like they are already doing in entertainment. All they have to do is to transfer the know-how and experiences garnered from the areas where they have comparative advantage such as ICT, sports and entertainment into business and politics. They should transfer the tried and tested principles such as innovativeness, passion and doggedness that brought successes in show business into other aspects of national life.

My message to the youths of Nigeria who are trying to perceive the aroma of soup that is not meant for them, is to device a change of strategy. The Yoruba saying ‘that a child that knows how to wash his hands eats with the elders’ is as poignant now as it was in the youthful days of our grand parents. Success at little things is the water with which youths can wash their hands in other to dine with the elders.  All it takes is to imbibe the spirit of excellence in all their endeavors. The history of Nigeria was made upon the toil of youthful actions. The nationalists who fought for Nigeria’s Independence and who emerged as the first set of national leaders took self-assigned leadership roles from their early twenties. The first generation of Nigerian economic elites changed the course of Nigeria’s economic history in there twenties through to their early thirties. The key word here is ‘self assigned’. They took what belonged to them rather than waiting for leadership to be bequeathed on them. So the present generation of youths must learn from the past. Nobody hands over power willingly. It has to be wrest from the unwilling hands through direct competition. The youths must keep in mind that even in a relay, both athletes have to run side by side for a while to enable a smooth transfer of baton. You would never obtain a smooth transfer of baton if one athlete stays motionless. If the youths expect a change of baton they must start the motion and sprint alongside the present runners to facilitate a smooth exchange of the baton.

To the Durojaye’s of Nigeria, we celebrate and thank you for your immense service to our nation. You have been kind to Nigeria with your toil but it is time to pass the baton. Leadership is a relay no athlete no matter how good he might be is allowed to run more than one lap. I appreciate the need for you to be active, but there are ample activities awaiting you in the Community, the Church, the golf course or even as minders and guardians for your grand children.  May God bless all of you as you enjoy the fruits of your labors.