Some Catholic bishops have called for deliberate positioning of youths for leadership and positive development in the country.
This was the thrust of their presentations on Tuesday at the International Youth Conference in Enugu with the theme: `Responding to the Challenges of Youth, Family and Society: The Millennial’s Response’.
The conference was organised by Foundation for African Cultural Heritage in collaboration with Catholic Women Organisation Nigeria.
The Most Rev. Paulinus Ezeokafor, the Bishop of Awka Diocese, noted that youths needed role models to be able to face the challenges of the future effectively.
He added that the Church as well as parents had a lot to do in the role modeling aspect of youths, especially in being shining examples and presenting them with heroic lives of saints who were of the same age with them.
Ezeokaor said: “This will definitely be an invaluable source of inspiration and encouragement to them. Some of the saints were martyred because they refused to bow to pressure of sex, money, worldly glories, idolatry and profanation.
“Reading their lives helps to spur us on in our own individual journeys.
“If on the contrary, we allow our youths to be exposed to pornography, indecent and violent movies, bad companionships and friendships and scandalous adults, they may copy them and ruin their lives.’’
On his part, the Most Rev. Godfrey Onah, Bishop of Nsukka, said youths have it in their consciousness that they are leaders of today and not that of tomorrow.
Onah challenged young people, which the Catholic Church had pegged their age to be between 15 and 35, to participate actively in community services, so that people could spot their sterling leadership qualities.
He urged them to shun negative lifestyles and pastimes in order to redeem the time for purposeful and worthwhile ventures and enterprises.
“Indecent sexual relationships or affection should be avoided and youths must learn those community and cultural values that promote hard work and resilience under older people.’’
In his address, Most Rev. Callistus Onaga, Bishop of Enugu Diocese, commended the organisers on their vision to bring practical solutions to challenges confronting youths.
Onaga, who was represented by the auxillary Bishop of his Diocese, Bishop Ernest Obodo, however, urged youths to take up skill acquisition to defeat unemployment, which remains one of the major challenges facing youths in the country.
He also urged elders, especially parents, to check youthful exuberance among young people by telling or showing them other people, who, through hard work and obedience, succeeded within their environment.
He said: “They must know that every responsible person must act with integrity and positive virtues to impact positively on the society.”
Earlier in an address of welcome, the President of CWON, Nwanneka Okolo, identified challenges confronting youths to include unemployment, drug abuse, indulgence in violence, wrong sexual affection, excessive leisure, internet scamming and engaging in misinformation among others.
According to her, youths are treasures as they are the today and tomorrow put together.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that over 200 women and young people drawn from different parts of the country are attending the two-day conference.
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