Unemployment has become a monster that has continued to rear
its ugly head in our country and the government appears to be helpless over the
situation. But, one method many people are now adopting to get out of the mess
is to acquire skills, which is usually not cheap as it appears.
This must be what the lawmaker representing Ifako/Ijaiye
Constituency 1 in
the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Dayo Saka Fafunmi had in mind, when he
embarked on free skill development programme for the people of the semi-urban
area.
His constituency office located in the heart of Ifako/Ijaiye
in Oyemekun Road
off College Road
has become a beehive of activities for both the old and the young that are
ready to acquire skills in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) as
well as Fashion Designing free of charge, courtesy of the people’s lawmaker.
The latest training programme, which would last three months
and one year respectively, started on January 16, 2014 and the participants,
who are learning fast, could not hide their joy and satisfaction about the
programme, which they said would change their lives for the better and provide
an escape route for them since there has been no solution to the problem of
unemployment in the nation.
Mufutau Ade Balogun, a 64-year old student of ICT at the Hon.
Saka Fafunmi Training Programme said that he has been able to learn how to open
the computer, create folder, design identity card, pamphlet with computer, and
learned about Microsoft word and excel.
“I came here because I had interest in computer and I want
to use it for my work. I am a midwife and a traditional doctor. With computer,
I can create data base for my work. I tried to do it before, but there was no
money. We are not paying any money for the training. Hon. Fafunmi is a nice
person, I knew him long ago and he is doing well as our representative in the
assembly,” he said.
Another beneficiary, Emenike Ogechukwu, said that prior to
attending the programme, she did not have any experience in computer training,
but that she has learnt much since the programme started. She said: “I want to
know more about computer. After the training, I want to further my education,
and the knowledge is not wasted. Our teachers are intelligent and hardworking.
I want to thank Hon. Fafunmi and I pray God would give him the strength to do
more and I know he would reap the reward of what he has done. I want to
encourage others to come and those here should be focused.
For Gbenga Ilori David, who is also undergoing ICT training,
the programme is laudable and it will be of help to the young and the old.
According to him, the training has given the youth the needed
courage and boldness outside. “I did a bit of computer in primary and secondary
schools, but what we learned in school then was not much. Here, we operate
computer easily, it was my mother that collected the form for me and it is free
of charge. I want to advise my colleagues out there not to be involved in
internet fraud, they can use the computer to do something better. I am a scientist
and I want to be a computer engineer,’ he stated.
Ogundeji Oluwagbemileke Peter started the training programme
on January 16, 2014 with other sand he described the whole thing as mind
blowing, adding that it is a good starting point for him. “I have been taught
how to create a folder and do other things. The world is a global village now;
I want to use it for personal business. I am trying to go into poultry farming
and I also want to use it in the studio as a musician. I read Business
Administration at the Lagos State University (LASU), and I worked briefly but
stopped to do some other things, I will be 30 years old in March. I want to
advise the youths to make use of this opportunity rather than waiting for jobs
that are not there. The sponsor of the programme has done something worth emulating,
which others do not want to do; he has come down to the level of the youths. He
has opened a door to the youth and he has laid a good example for the rest of
us. Some people would just collect their salaries and pocket it, but he is not
like that and this is commendable. He has been of help to some of us that are
benefiting from it,” he said.
There was also a 14- year-old boy, Waliu Onasanya, who is
about to write his JSSCE, having completed JSS 3 programmes, He said that he
attended the training to gain knowledge of computer, while praising Hon.
Fafunmi for embarking on such a project for the teeming residents of
Ifako/Ijaiye Constituency 1.
A housewife, Mrs. Fatima Hamtar said that the programme gave
her an opportunity to know more about computer for the first time, adding that
she hopes to use it to work in an organization in the nearest future or even
set up her own computer business
A female politician in the area, Alhaja Abiola Danjuma
decided not to rely on her trade, she registered to learn fashion designing and
she said that she has started sewing with the machine after two weeks of
coaching.
“They distributed forms three years ago, but I could not meet
up because that was the year I went to Mecca.
I then made up my mind that I would do it this year. I collected the only form
they gave my area because I co-ordinate Hon. Saka Fafunmi support group in my
area. Now, I am learning fast, I can sew ‘buba and sokoto,’ after two weeks.
They taught us how to sew all kinds of clothes, I was using thread and needle,
but now I use machine and the programme is free of charge. After the programme,
I will start doing sewing on a commercial basis; I couldn’t undergo the
training before now because of money. I will be sewing for myself and for
others and as a politician, I can sew for my colleagues. I thought tailoring
was not all that serious, now I can appreciate it and I thank God for that. It
is a one-year programme and I am glad, I am 45 years old now. I want to advise
my people to be part of programmes like this. We pray God will help Hon.
Fafunmi for what he is doing for us, instead of asking him for money, things
like this would help, I can now start sewing campaign uniforms for fellow
politicians and make money from them,’ she stated.
Mrs. Odunayo is a graduate of secretarial administration of
over 10 years, but she decided to follow her passion for designing and now that
the opportunity to learn the trade free of charge came, she felt she should not
miss it.
Her words: “I am self-employed, after my degree at the
Federal Polytechnic, Ede
in 2004, I went into human resource management for about five years. After graduation here, I will set up my
private practice to make money and empower others. There are so many
opportunities in a programme like this, it is good to empower yourself and be
self-reliant and as a woman, you would not depend on your husband. Youth should
come out and do something with their hands, I didn’t do fashion before now
because I didn’t have the time. My last child is just about six months old now
and I had to leave my other job for maternity leave and I didn’t go back after
that.”
49-years-old Mrs. Fadekemi Toriola is also into trading, but
she is now learning fashion designing at the centre and she looks forward to a
better future.
“I appreciate what Hon. Fafunmi is doing, there was a time
we had problem with somebody and we went to see him, we love the way he handled
the matter, and since then I said anything he does, I would be there. When we
got here they accepted us, I am a trader and I trade in the evening, I felt
that if I come here, I would gain and others would also gain from me. There are
some of us, who didn’t know much and since we came here we have learned much. I
can now handle male and female clothes, the people teaching us are very good
and we are learning fast,” she revealed.
One of the instructors in the ICT section, Mr. Babatunde
Solaja said that the programme has been so great. He revealed that they started
by teaching the students computer fundamentals, went to windows and moved on to
Microsoft words, ‘now we are on Microsoft excel, all these within a month. We
have been able to come so far, and that shows the students are serious and the
teachers too know what they are doing,’ he said.
The section, he said trains about 200 students daily, while
stressing that the feedback has been that “we are working and they are happy.
We started on 16th
January, 2014, but the project started long ago in Fagba. The
students come on their own, they are residents of this area, there is no
discrimination at all, people come in to get form for the programme, and it is
free of charge.
“I want to commend Hon. Dayo Fafunmi for what he is doing, we
see boys who are unemployed and who commit crimes, but the students come here
and within three months, they will graduate and they can work in various
organizations such as business centres, advert agencies and others, they can
even start on their own,” he said.
Moses Abiodun is a fashion designing instructor at the
centre and he said the students are responding well.
“We are all working together; even the married men and women
amongst them do whatever we ask them to do. I am patient with them, if I give
them anything and they don’t do it, we know how to deal with them. I am a
fashion designer and I still do my private work after finishing from here. The
programme is laudable, they didn’t have the experience before, now they can
sew, and they can establish their own business after the training programme.
The work is very lucrative if you know your way. There is money in tailoring.
People pray for Hon. Fafunmi everyday because the programme is helping them a
lot,” he emphasized.
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