All Progressives Congress, (APC) National leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has urged the federal government to recruit at least 50 million youths into the Nigerian Army to help tackle the rising spate of insecurity in the country.
Tinubu who spoke at the 12th colloquium to celebrate his 69th birthday in Kano State, said the move will boost Nigeria’s fight against terrorism, banditry and all forms of internal and external security threats confronting the nation.
He said; “We are under-policed and we are competing with armed robbers and bandits to recruit from the youths who are unemployed —33 per cent unemployed?”
“Recruit 50 million youths into the army,” he stated, adding that “what they will eat —cassava, corn, yam, will grow here.”
The APC leader, while reacting to recent statistics by the National Bureau of Statistics that over 23 million Nigerians are jobless, also urged the government to create jobs for youths in the agricultural value chains.
Tinubu said;“Don’t talk about illiteracy, anybody who can hold a gun, who can handle a gun, who can cock and shoot is technically competent to repair a tractor in the farm.”
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