The National Assembly has been urged to ensure that the Peace Corps Bill which has resurfaced before its 10th Assembly is given an accelerated hearing and speedy passage.
This is just as President Bola Tinubu was also urged to give the Bill his assent as soon as a clean copy of it is eventually presented before him by the federal legislative arm.
Real estate expert and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Pelican Valley Nigeria Limited, Dr Babatunde Adeyemo, made the appeal when a six-man delegation of the Ogun State Command of the Peace Corps of Nigeria (PCN) led by the Commandant, Akinyemi Olufemi paid him a courtesy visit in Abeokuta in Friday.
Commander Akinyemi and his team had come to intimate Adeyemo of the organisation’s resolve to adopt him as its patron.
Other members of the delegation included Olokode Damilare (state finance), Ademuyiwa Olufemi (Policy & Planning), Bakare Selimot (state adjutant), Akinbode John (state information officer) and Olopade Abiodun (State ICT).
In his response, Adeyemo commended the corps for its youth-focused initiatives while expressing confidence that present Peace Corps Bill will receive the president’s blessing of President Tinubu.
“In a situation where you have many of our youths going into kidnapping and other social vices while some other even Japa, we should be grateful when we have youths coming to be part of this kind of organisation. It is something that we shouldn’t let go if we really want to encourage Nigerian youths to be hardworking.
“Given the organisation’s over two decades of existence with its emphasis on nurturing young people and inspiring them to develop attributes of patriotism, good citizenship, positive work ethics and sound leadership qualities, a legislative backing and the president’s assent to the Bill will open a new vista of opportunity for our youths to better serve the country and achieve their potentials.
“With over 200 million estimated population and increasing urbanisation and the increased multifaceted and varying security challenges confronting the nation today, our country requires more efforts and relevant agencies to combat them so as to keep Nigeria, the citizens and businesses safe.
“So, it will be a right step in the right direction if the Peace Corps Bill is passed into law and it receives the president’s assent to make the organisation a government security outfit. It will go a long way to complement the efforts of other existing agencies towards carrying out the onerous task of keeping the nation safe,” Adeyemo said.
and then