By Simon Utebor,The Nation
Copyright thenationonlineng
Calls for responsible, visionary, and patriotic leadership took center stage yesterday as the Abuja Leadership Centre, in collaboration with the TETFUND Centre of Excellence in Public Governance and Leadership, University of Abuja, hosted a one-day Youth Leaders’ Clinic at Dennis Osadebay University, Asaba, Delta State.
The clinic, themed “Empowering the Next Generation Leaders”, brought together senior prefects and student leaders from Delta, Edo, and Bayelsa states to promote civic responsibility, accountability, and ethical leadership among young people.
Delta State Commissioner for Secondary Education, Mrs. Rose Ezewu, who delivered a goodwill message on behalf of the state government, described the programme as “timely and laudable,” stressing the importance of nurturing responsible leaders.
The Director of the Abuja Leadership Centre, Professor Philip Dahida, highlighted the centre’s track record in leadership studies and policy research, noting its mission to provide practical solutions to Nigeria’s governance challenges while grooming the next generation of leaders.
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“The centre is producing leaders who are not just certificated but capable of providing solutions to policy depletion, leadership quagmires, and governance bottlenecks,” he said.
In his remarks, retired Deputy Inspector General of Police, Marvel Akpoyibo, stressed that Nigeria’s underdevelopment is primarily a leadership problem.
He advocated for early training of young people in leadership values, saying, “We are catching them young to imbibe traits that will make them better citizens of our dear country. With good leadership, development will be rapid, and Nigeria can compete globally.”
Earlier, the Coordinator of the Abuja Leadership Centre for the Edo, Delta, and Bayelsa contingent, Mrs. Winifred Elikwu, explained that the programme was designed to establish the link between citizenship, participation, and leadership.
“Citizenship gives you values, participation gives you practice, while leadership is the result,” she said, stressing that true leadership is citizenship in action.
The clinic combined lectures, group deliberations, and feedback exercises to ensure participants internalize the lessons.
Schools were also tasked to present what their student leaders had learnt at their morning assemblies and submit recorded clips as part of feedback to the centre.
The one-day event, described by participants as highly impactful, ended with a renewed call for young leaders to embrace service, integrity, and civic responsibility as the building blocks of national development.
