The senatorial candidate of the Accord in Oyo South, Kolapo Kola-Daisi has again intoned the importance of youth engagement and development as a necessary tool for national development.
He stated during his pre-match address at the final of his KKD football competition held at the Liberty stadium on Sunday.
The competition, which saw 86 grassroot youth teams from the entire 9 local governments of Oyo South compete over a span of 3 months, culminated to a final match between Swanlux FC from Ibadan SouthWest and Shining Stars FC from Ibadan North.
“90% of our population is under the age of 50, and the median age in the country is currently 19. This means that the youth constitute the majority of the population.
“To me, this also indicates that if we can productively engage and solve the challenges that the youth face, we will have solved a large portion of our country’s problems “Kola-Daisi opened.
“Out there in the world where things work, Sport is a big tool for youth engagement and development, and I believe we can replicate same here. As part of our plans to engage the youth, it will be used as a major channel to take these talented young ones off the street and maximise their potential.
“I play with some of these kids on weekends across the span of the senatorial zone, and I’m always amazed at the talent on display. So, politics aside, it was an easy decision to start now and provide them with a platform to blossom and embark on a journey that has the potential to showcase them to the world.”
A total of 1.1 million naira was taken home by the final four teams in cash prizes, with the winner going home with 500,000 naira.
Individual prizes were also given to the Most Valuable Player, the best Keeper and the highest goal scorer in the tournament.
“For me, all of these boys, 2,150 of them, are winners. This is because we will be monitoring their progress and drawing opportunities for growth towards them. This is not the end of our engagement with each and everyone of them, including their coaches”. Kola-Daisi remarked after the medals and cash presentation.
He added, “You should also know that we are already talking to the female football, boxing, and athletics bodies here, and we have set up a sport’s development committee to initiate and manage our plans for the deployment of sports to engage even more young people, who I know are in their abundance across Oyo South”.
The senatorial candidate also expressed confidence in the people’s support to win at the polls on the 25th of February, 2023.
