The Ooni of Ife, Adeyeye Ogunwusi, on Tuesday unveiled a uniquely designed Moremi Statue of Liberty, with a charge on governments to meaningfully engage the youths.
A statement signed by Moses Olafare, the Director of Media and Public Affairs in the palace in Ile-Ife, Osun State, said that the Ooni dedicated the statue to the economic liberation of the African youth.
Olafare said that historic unveiling event was witnessed by over 5,000 youths, adding that the Ooni extolled the virtues of Moremi Ajasoro, a celebrated historical heroine in Yoruba culture.
The 42-feet statue – third tallest in Africa – is situated at the exact spot where Moremi lived in Ile-Ife thousands of years ago.
He said that the monarch also described youth as the greatest accessories for the development of any nation, who must be given utmost attention by the various African governments.
According to him, the monarch decried the redundancy of youth, blaming it on patronage of foreign goods and services.
“These Nigerian and African youth are naturally endowed, and with the level of their education or training, they are the materials needed to develop this country and the continent of Africa.
“It surprises me that our governments across Africa still encourage capital flight by always giving the jobs to foreigners at the expense of our youth, several of whom are more qualified and competent to do the jobs.
“I am proud to say that this project is the first of its kind; 100 per cent indigenous; involving about 200 youths and all the materials used were sourced locally from the 774 local government areas in Nigeria.
“I want to stress that Nigeria has manpower that can create, construct, and build standard and original goods.
“I, therefore, appeal to African governments to empower youths and give them the chance to display their capacities,” Ooni Ogunwusi was quoted as saying.
