Pastor Poju Oyemade himself must have felt it – this was the year that The Platform finally went mainstream. You certainly know something has gone mainstream when the videos go viral on ‘Igwe Tupac’ Twitter and Instagram and even old-time-river politicians in Abuja are referring to it.
The star speech, and the one that made the speaker a brief national sensation, was former governor Peter Obi’s tome on government waste. You add Thisday editor Olusegun Adeniyi’s stem-winder on Nigeria’s luggage economy, and it was an irresistible session.
So the next Sunday in church, he told the members, as he worked through his wonder, that he would have to take it to the next level, before someone else does it for him. And so Covenant Christian Centre, already passionate about ‘neural pathways’ that lead to economic and political leadership would be setting up a School of Governance.
Really important intervention.
Olusegun Obasanjo had a similar programme that has struggled in recent years. And the universities have also struggled to maintain this imperative. Save for the impressive Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy, this is a gap that desperately needs be filled.
More impressively, Pastor Poju has wasted no time.
He kicked off the first stage yesterday, with a programme for developing the next stage of national leaders. The Young Professionals Boot camp (YPB) was launched. YPB involves training, mentoring and providing direction for youths between the ages of 20-25. The aim is to give them world-class practical training for success in the marketplace.
According to the organisers: “we hope to equip young people with world-class practical training, inspire innovation, drive success in the marketplace and ultimately lead to the transformation of the economy”.
Speakers include the finance commission in Anambra, the editor-in-chief of this site who also ran the Muhammadu Buhari campaign communication, amongst others.
Considering our piece earlier in the week, this is truly remarkable.
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