BY FELIX JEREMIAH
Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson has called on students of Bayelsa State to join hands with his administration in re-orientating the mindset of the people, particularly the youth to imbibe the right values to build a virile society.
The Governor, who spoke at the presentation cheque for payment of bursary allowances in Yenagoa lamented the erosion of the core values of truthfulness, integrity, hard work and patriotic communal services.
Describing the youth as the custodian of the future, he urged them to be wary of desperate politicians who undermine positive values for their selfish political gains to the detriment of the general good of the society.
Governor Dickson, who reiterated his administration’s belief in channeling the resources of the state to tackle its developmental needs rather than be a paymaster to individuals for political reasons, urged the people to stand by what is true and right for prosperity and development.
He expressed concern over the growing propensity and clamour for free money, warning that except something drastic is done, it would be difficult for the state to break out from the vicious cycle of poverty and economic slavery.
Governor Dickson, who emphasized that government’s efforts at developing the state will not yield much if the people fail to imbibe the right values and attitudes towards governance, challenged the students to be on the vanguard of changing the negative mindset of the people in their locales.
To this end, the governor directed the Chief of Staff, Government House, Yenagoa, Rt Hon. Talford Ongolo and the Special Adviser on Tertiary Education, Dr Godwill Ziriki to liaise with the leadership of the National Union of Bayelsa State Students to work out modalities for the organization of a one-day seminar on value re-orientation.
His words: Let me again call on all the students, who are leaders of tomorrow, because among you are the future governors, senators and presidents. I want to tell you that you have a lot of work to do. Not only do we call on you to study and dedicate yourselves to acquiring knowledge so that you will be able to compete favourably with your peers for any position in this country and anywhere in the world on an equal basis. But you’ve got to know the peculiar problem that this society has that we must collectively deal with.
” We are gradually losing our individuality and values. We are losing our sense of what is good, right and fair. We cannot afford to be a society where everything and everybody has a cash prize I will like you all to take this message to all your colleagues that you must work with government to change the mindset of our people.
“Our mindset has to change, otherwise all the effort we are doing; building roads and bridges, schools and hospitals and also supporting education, will not yield much unless we also invest in the mind and try to see how all and each of you in your own capacity can be an agent of change and value orientation. If we do not succeed in building the minds in the right ways, then this society will forever be a society of slaves and of people who do not know what they want and most importantly, a society that does not know where it is going to”
