Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, has expressed worry over Nigerian youth attraction to the ongoing reality show, Big Brother Naija.
Addressing youth on Wednesday in Ile-Ife, Osun state, in celebration of the International Youth Day, the Yoruba monarch wondered why the turn out of voters for general elections were abysmally lower than votes for the housemates of the reality show.
“Nigerian youths are fond of accusing, abusing our leaders. Stop abusing but contribute your own quota. Let’s wear our thinking caps and begin to act like the real future leaders that we are,” he said.
“In the last general election, the total number of vote cast was around 27 million while over 170 million people voted during the 2019 Big Brother Naija reality show.
“This is a practical reality of who Nigerian youths are, where our priorities lie. The funny side is that we still go to bed, have a good sleep, and wake up with the hope to meet a Nigeria we didn’t create.”
The Ooni further called on the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) to work out an alternative to the BBNaija show that will project the country’s values, cultures, and traditions.
“The proposed show will be structured in a way that young professionals, talented individuals, and others across several fields of endeavour will be showcased and helped to reach their peak,” he said.
“This will help participants and viewers to have access to people that can be seen as role models. Every time I talk about this, everyone laughs and moves on. What kind of nation are we building?
“When people say this country, or what kind of country is this, they are indirectly saying these people – it is the people that make a country; so what kind of Nigerian youths are we?”
