The leadership of the Nigeria Scout Organisation (NSO) has called on the federal government to effectively fund the outfit to ensure an end to criminality, youth mismanagement, cultism, terrorism, and other negative vices in the country.
The chief scout commissioner of Nigeria / chief executive officer of the Scout Association of Nigeria, Hon. Dave Padopads-Awunah made the call in a press conference on the forthcoming Nigeria Scout Parade and President Awards (NISPPA-2023) in Abuja.
Padopads-Awunah blamed criminality, terrorism, drug abuse, trafficking of persons, and prostitution on the clear absence of the role of scouting in tailoring the minds of young people towards the right paths in life.
“Sadly, scouting has over the years diminished to the disadvantage of young people and the nation. The clear absence of the role of scouting in tailoring the minds of young people is clearly shown in the inexplicable crisis of youth mismanagement. Vices like secret cultism, fraud, trafficking of vital human organs, drug abuse, trafficking of persons, and prostitution have reduced Nigeria to a land of the unknown.
“Journalists have at many times in history, risen to the occasion in moments of moral crisis. It is on this note that I call on the media in Nigeria to come to the rescue of a country whose ship is fast sinking into the cesspool of rot and decay by promoting the activities of scouting as the only panacea to the moral issues confronting Nigeria.
“Here in Nigeria, we have a presence in all our 36 states and FCT with over 60 million people as scouts at one point or the other, including prominent persons in diverse fields. It is also noteworthy that The Scouts Association of Nigeria (TSAN) was established by an act of parliament of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, boasting currently over 3,000,000 active members and intending to grow the numbers to 10 million in the next two years,” he said.
The chief scout commissioner while speaking on the forthcoming event in Abuja, said that The Nigeria Scout Parade and President Award event is the brainchild of the present scout administration in Nigeria, created to enhance the needed cohesion among members of the Nigeria scout family, promotion of scouting, commitment of loyalty to the unity of Nigeria through scouting, among others.
