Ambassador Adeniyi Mathew, the President General of World Youth Organization an affiliate of United Nations in this interview with Remi Oladoye shares his vision and programm for youths in the world . Excerpts:
Congratulations on your election and inauguration as the President General of the World Youth Organization, can you let us into the journey to the presidency of the world largest youth organization
Well to God be the glory, I give thanks to Almighty God the author and finisher of our faith that makes the journey so easy, because sincerely humanly speaking it is not but God made it easy.
Can you tell us how easy it was, who and who are involved and as a black man why do you think you can be the world youth president
Ok, well the journey started over a year ago, around 2015 January when I strategize that I want to be president General of World youth organization so I started by meeting some people I mean, people that matters, the first person I met was the former president of Nigeria his Excellency Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, when I met him and discuss my vision with him the man laughed and ask me Do you think you can be ? while he was laughing I just said yes I can and immediately he stopped laughing and said he was encouraged by my enthusiasm that I can do it so we started immediately he was the chief navigator, he was the one navigating for me across the world talking to the president of each nations about this canvassing for me
You contested against white candidates how did it happened or you went with African Juju
Laugh… I went with God and God helped me because it wasn’t easy , a lot of people have been asking me the same question especially winning the election with a wide margin but honestly it was God all through, it is neither by my might not power but God intervention
You must have spent millions of naira on the project, how did you raise fund
Well its not in Naira, its in dollars sincerely I use all my investment to secure this, some of my properties and support from people
What do you want to gain from this position or you just want the fame
Actually since my secondary school days, I just have passion to be a solution to peoples problem s, to help and assist people and make them happy, and since we have a feelings that people there are not doing it well I felt we should just take the risk and getting into the system to impart life instead of complaining that some people are not doing it well so its my passion to torch life and affect life positively, I think I can do it and that is why I go for it and with God by my side
So what do you want to do differently?
Basically I am planning to do things differently to affects life and to empower youths across the world particularly to make self depended
How do you intend to achieve that ?
Through my connection and influence we will do that
How many Nigerians are in that organization and what is your relationship with them
Actually we don’t deal with individuals we deal with organization, I am in relationship with Nigerian youth council, national association of Nigerian Students( NANS) National Association of Nigerian University Students , National Association of Polytechnic Students and so many youth organization in the Nigeria and all over the world
So how will the youth especially from Africa benefits from your programs
I have a lot of program that will benefits youths and I am starting from my country which is Nigeria, and Africa which I have lined up and the focus is to empower them to be self dependent and I am into partnership with some international organization already ,including International Labour Organization, UNESCO and others in order to make life better for youths across the world
What does the world YOUTH means to you?
It means a lot because we are the leaders of the tomorrow, even today because tomorrow is here already, because we have been hearing leaders of tomorrow since our primary school days and it is here today so youth symbolizes strength of a nation and with our plan, vision and contributions we make nations great
Are you sure you are not on the platform for political gain?
Not at all
Do you have a political ambition?
For now I don’t have any , yes I can say I am a politician because for me to rise to this post I have done a lot of politics so I can call myself a politician so if later in the future I found myself in politics or any other thing, I will serve people well
Let’s have an insight into your background
I came from a humble background, I was born and brought up in Ilorin my parent are from Ogbomoso, I went to Baptists nursery and primary school Surulere in Ilorin then I proceeded to Anglican grammar school Akure and later to Ladoke Akintola University of Technology in Ogbomoso to study Agronomy after which I left for Western University of Ontario Canada to do accounting and I have my masters in accounting at the same time
So how will you transform your academic background with your experience in your new position?
I have been doing that and I pray to God to continue to help me, I am trying to gather more experience from people that are older than me my mates and young ones everyday you get to know one or two things so every day I get to tap knowledge from people around me even on internet I read a lot of book too to get more ideas
Don’t you think this issue of discriminations against the black will affect your operation as the president of World Youth Organization?
Well you might not be far from the truth because, personally before I emerge there were a lot of scrutinzation , we were 178 that want to be the president of WYO but they scrutinize us mainly because there were many blacks in the race , out of 178 I think we have almost 50 blacks so they were like while would black be too many in the race, they scrutinize us they did a lot of screening just to disengage us ,they did a lot of screening till be wet to 20 candidates where just because of me being the only black , we again went through a lot of screening and i was the only black that remain in the race till we get to nine that eventually contested for the election, actually I was facing that even when I was declared the winner they were surprised that a black man not even ordinary black man, a Nigerian will lead biggest youth organization in the world so there were a lot persecution and protest but to God be the glory we have settled that and I let them realized reasons why we have to work together and stop any form of racism and discrimination and I pray may God help me
So what is your focus
In a simple term, its youth empowerment, my office will be mainly concerned about the welfare of the youth across the word which is paramount I am to care for them in order to be self dependent.
Youth empowerment is in two form, one is material empowerment another one is giving them means of sustainability in which area do you want to come in
In both, we have different category of youth, some are educated , some are not, so those that are educated we have plans for them , those that are not, we have plan for them and the upcoming youth, we are having a lot of plans for them for instance I have already facilitate an international university that will encourage our upcoming youth to go to school, it’s going to be free, so that they be educated and those that cannot go to school we will empower them in the area of specialization so as to make life bearable for them
When is your tenure going to be over?
Its ten years
Won’t you be over youth age by the time your tenure is expected to be over
Not at all, I am still a youth
Are you assuring Nigerian youth that you won’t disappoint us
May God help us, I can do though God that strengthen me, I am human being like them and human being can fucked up, I don’t pray to disappoint and I pray that God will help me
I want you to look at what is termed youth empowerment in Africa, especially in Nigeria do you think the governments I getting it right .
Actually they are trying their best in, what they need is partnership and encouragement, we shouldn’t live them alone, while we are thinking about what our government can do for us, we should also think of what we can do to help ourselves so we should assist them , they are trying and that is why United Nations created that office in other to be the link between the link between the government and the United nation in other to assist the government to lift the burden , and we are ready to collaborate , partner with them in other to make things easy
