CURBING YOUTH CRIME IN NIGERIA

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Lagos establishes vocational centre for Area Boys

by Simon Utebor

Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola has inaugurated vocational centre as part of the measures to get urchins, popularly known as Area Boys, off the streets.

Governor Babatunde Fashola  advertisement

Fashola said at the inauguration of the Lagos State School Leavers Modern Apprenticeship on Tuesday that the centre, apart from providing a base for young school leavers to acquire skills, would provide a base for miscreants to be trained free of charge

Represented by his deputy, Mrs. Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, the governor explained that he built the centre with security votes.

He said he believed the state would recoup the money when they (miscreants) start to pay tax to the government as responsible people.

Fashola noted that most of the urchins dropped out of schools and did not have good parental care. According to him, the situation they found themselves forced them into taking drugs and other vices.

He said, "These youths if trained could be very useful members of the society. That is why we feel it is imperative to train these miscreants.

"This is what we have been doing to secure the state from crime. Before 2001, you could not walk on the streets of Lagos without being molested by these miscreants. We have about 17 other skill acquisition centres to arrest the situation and prevent crimes."

Fashola said the Graduate Vocational Employability Skills Training programme was designed to provide employment and vocational training for graduate apprentices.

Senator Olabiyi Durojiaye lamented that the country was currently losing over N960bn as capital flight to foreign expatriates.

He commended the state government for partnering other international skill acquisition centres to train and retrain the nation's youths.

Culled from  Punch Nigeria