Youths at a one-day Peace Lecture Series. Photo: Georgina Humphrey/Radio Nigeria
A group, Peace for Free Lecture Series, wants Nigerians to promote tolerance, peace and unity to ensure the ultimate consummation and maturity of the democratic process”.
The convener of the Peace for Free Lecture Series, Mr Chris Kalue made the plea at a meeting organised by a civil society group, “Peace For Free Advocacy Initiative, on Thursday in Abuja:
He explained that the country’s teeming youths need to be speedily mobilized and enlightened to understand its political system so as to positively contribute towards sustainable peace in the country.
“Our advocacy outreach is intended to engage citizens, particularly the youths in a free discussion to educate them on the tenets of democratic practices and to attempt to clearly explain perceived uncertainties in our polity that could lead to violent disruptions and truncation of our fragile democracy beyond the 2023 general elections” Kalu added.
He further revealed that the lecture series will herald Campus Storming for Peace and Unity proposed to hold in tertiary schools across the country in the coming months”.
“On 27 April 2016, the General Assembly and the Security Council adopted “twin” resolutions on peacebuilding, which outlined a new approach for peacebuilding while introducing the term “sustaining peace” he stated. “According to the United Nations, “Sustaining peace should be broadly understood as a goal and a process with activities aimed at the prevention of conflict, underpinned by the people-centered approach of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and grounded in international human rights laws and standards.”
“This ensures a defining role, particularly for young people who constitute a greater percentage of the Nigerian population. The National Bureau of Statistics estimates that 60 percent of the country’s population is under the age of 25, placing Nigeria as the country with the youngest population in Africa.
The Executive Secretary of, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Tony Ojukwu, who was represented by Titalayo Samuel, Deputy Director of Human Rights Monitoring, said “As a large nation of cultural and religious diversities we must learn to tolerate one another and eschew violence.
Reporting by Georgina Humphrey; Editing by Julian Osamoto