Skip to main content

It’s time for Nigerian youths to get involved in politics – Macron


France President, Emmanuel Macron says it is time Nigerian youths participate actively in politics to be elected into public offices.
Macron, who spoke at the Afrika Shrine on Tuesday night in Ikeja, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria said the message he had for Nigerian youths was to be engaged in politics in order to change the situation of the country positively.
“If I have one message for young people in the shrine tonight, yes, politics is important, be involved, that is my advice,” he said.
The president described Afrika Shrine as an iconic place for the propagation of African music and culture, saying that he was immensely enriched when he first visited the place in 2012.
“I discovered Nigeria and a lot of my friends are here. I discovered Nigeria and I discovered Lagos and I discovered the shrine. This place is an iconic place and it is a place where the best of music are given. I have to say my main memories about this place are friends, proud people, proud of their culture, proud of their art and music. I have a very different view of Africa than a lot of other people in Europe because I was in the Gambia.” he said.
Macron stressed the need for Africa and Europe, especially France to build a new commonality, adding that “this new commonality is not based on what is important for Europeans but what is important for Africa, about their culture, how they build their culture and promote the culture and which places are important for them about their culture. Being here, I do recognize their culture and respect their views. This place is important for Africa and their culture and that is why I am here.”
Macron at Afrika Shrine


The French president hinted of plans to host the African Cultural Season 2020 in France, which he said, would be about promoting African culture in Europe, adding that the event was going to be for Africa and for African artistes.
“It will include people with fashion, African movies, new generation of artistes will be coming from Africa and it will be organized by them to show Europe and France” the real culture of Africa.
“The event will be financed by African leaders. It will not be sponsored by France or European businesses, but by African businesses, it is brand new. This season is a unique one and it will be the new face of Africa in Europe organize by Africans, providing what you like and what you have here,” he explained.
Macron also said the reason why African continent was being painted in negative light was because Africans were not telling their stories to the outside world.
“I am not so sure the image of Africa is always negative. Some people say this is a tremendous continent with young people and lots of opportunities and so on and at the same time a lot of people say Africa is a place of terrorism and needs to liberate itself. The two assumptions are true at the same time because Africa is just more than that.
“It is a young continent, what we need is African people speaking about Africa. We need a new narrative, we need you people to change this narrative, what we need is young generation of artistes, entrepreneurs, civil societies, journalists and intellectuals coming from Africa and speaking about Africa in your own narrative everywhere,” he said.
Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, who spoke at the event, emphasized that Lagos was now the 5th largest economy in Africa and played host to rich cultural heritage.
Macron at Afrika Shrine
He said Macron’s becoming France president as a youth gave hope to Nigerian youths as they constituted over 60 percent of the population.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

AS NIGERIA CRUMBLES, NO UNITY IN DIVERSITY

  In recent times, I have sat down to observe the Horrors going on in Nigeria. I have engaged people in discussion to get their views and in a deep reflection, all i can see is complete disdain, failure and frustration because every sector has crumbled to irredeemable state. Today, i am not writing as a Biafran like I use to, but as an African, who imagines rapid development across the continent of Africa IF Biafra is restored tomorrow. I am just looking at the versed human and technological resources in Biafra Land and how the continent will flood BIAFRA for different businesses. Nigeria must accept the fact that the major root to our problems is DIVERSITY IN CULTURE AND BELIEFS. This is why we have never been United from inception. No Nation with different cultures and beliefs ever succeeded. Some questions you may ask... Can America and Pakistan exist as a Nation considering the fact that they are people with different value system? NIGERIA was created forcefully by a white m...
Post a Comment
Read more

BISHOP OYEDEPO ADDRESSES ISSUE OF LIVING FAITH RURAL CHURCHES LOW INCOME

  NONSENSE ! OUR ONLY CRITERIA IS HOW MANY SOULS WON AND NOT HOW MUCH INCOME. WHEN WE EMPLOYED 7000 PASTORS AT ONCE SOCIAL MEDIA WAS DEAD. WE HAVE MORE EMPLOYEES THAN MOST STATES IN NIGERIA AND WE HAVE NEVER OWED THEM OR TAKEN BANK OVERDRAFT ONCE. THE PASTORS WERE ASKED TO GO BECAUSE THEY WERE UNFRUITFUL. MANY OF THE CHURCHES BUILT CAN NEVER PAY FOR THE CHURCH BUILDING IN 30 YEARS. WE HAVE NO PATIENCE WITH FAILURE HERE. -Bishop David Oyedepo at CHoP *We have built more than 1,000 Churches in rural areas where in the next 30 years, they can never generate such fund, with each costing more than 14 Million Naira. *We are hunting after souls, not income. People are confused about our Ministry. I learnt some fellows said, “you know, they are not bringing income, that is why they asked them to go.” We asked you to go because you are unfruitful. Unfruitful! Blatant failure. Doing what there? We have no patience with failure here. When we employed 7,000 people at a time, Social Media was...
Post a Comment
Read more

5 Final Thoughts on Abba Kyari and Hushpuppi

  1. As with everything Nigerian, the Abba Kyari/Hushpuppi fraud case has taken on a predictably ethnoreligious hue. I’ve read some people claim that Kyari is being targeted by America because he is a Muslim. Ha! Well, Hushpuppi is also a Muslim. His full name is Ramon Olorunwa Abbas. Most Muslims will recognize Abbas as a Muslim name but probably not Ramon. Ramon is the Yoruba Muslim domestication of Abdulrahman. Read my July 13, 2014 column titled “Top 10 Yoruba Names You Never Guessed Were Arabic Names” to understand how Abdulrahman became Ramon (which is also sometimes rendered as Ramonu or Raymond). The name is #7 on my list. Kyari’s replacement, announced earlier today, is a Tunji Disu, another Muslim. Disu is the Yoruba Muslim domestication of Idris. That name is #3 on my list. Most importantly, though, the man Hushpuppi defrauded of over $1 million— with Kyari’s help— is an Arab Muslim. So, the idea that Kyari is being hounded because he’s a Muslim is silly. 2. Some people ...
Post a Comment
Read more