National Youth Council cries for help

Koforidua, May 17, GNA - The Eastern Regional Co-ordinator of the National Youth Council (NYC), Mr Paapa Adjei Kyeremeh, has said the duty of the government to unearth the potentials of the youth had been taken for granted by politicians as seen happening in the National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP).

He said the NYEP activities had been politicized based on the fact that its co-ordinators were appointed by the incumbent government.

Mr Kyeremeh told the GNA in an interview that this had caused the youth who had already been employed in the programme to be dismissed and new ones appointed.

Mr Kyeremeh said this could jeopardize the future of the youth and could not make the objectives of the programme to be realized.

"Anything about youth welfare should not be politicized. It creates problems for the youth in the long run and the aim of the programme will, as well, not be achieved," he said.

Mr Kyeremeh said the NYC was established to empower the youth with skills and that was the reason why the NYEP was made an arm of the NYC.

"However, politicians have made it seem the NYEP is the mother body and the NYC, an arm. They are concentrating on the NYEP for their own parochial needs."

He said the government had provided the NYEP Co-ordinators with vehicles to facilitate their work whereas 93we at the NYC have no car to work with."

Mr Kyeremeh said as a Regional Co-ordinator of the NYC, he had to board public transport to do his co-ordination duties.

"I cannot attend most programmes especially when I am invited. I give excuses because 91T &T' provided is not enough to take me there."

He expressed grief that most of the district offices of the NYC had no computers except a typewriter each and added that staff capacity in the various offices was very low.

"Each of the district offices has only two staff members; a Co-ordinator and a Typist and the regional office has only five."

Mr Kyeremeh said the biggest problem confronting the NYC was lack of funds for programme execution at both the regional and district levels, adding that since the beginning of the year, the council had not embarked on any activity due to lack of funds.

He appealed to the government to give some attention to the council to ensure that funds were regularly provided for activities to empower the energetic and future leaders of the country.

Mr Appiah Kweku Boateng, the New Juaben Municipal Co-ordinator of the council, called on the national leadership of the NYC to be up-and-doing to ensure that funds were got from the government to enable the district offices of the council to perform actively.

"We are paid to work but we are not provided with implements to work with, when you give somebody salary and you do not give them implements to work with, you have done nothing" he said.