A child’s rights group, Splendour Child Empowerment Foundation is to host political stakeholders in Abuja, to discuss child’s rights issues as the countdown to the 2023 general elections begins.
The founder of the group, Miss Splendour Joe-King, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja on Sunday that the event would be used to discuss child’s rights issues in the emerging political dispensation.
According to her, the group will host a dinner to bring key political actors together to discuss the future of the Nigerian child.
She said the event, whose exact date had not been fixed would also seek ways to engender peace and harmony among political players, to make the country conducive for kids.
Joe-King described the planned peace dinner as an off-shoot of a peace project she had earlier initiated, to educate children and youths on the need to sustain peace in society.
She, therefore, pleads for the support and funding of the event, which she tagged: ”Nigerian Children Call for Peace.
“As a kid, if you have a mindset of peace you will not want to join any terrorist group because it is extremely bad for the future of children.
“The peace campaign is because if you look at our world today, we are not hearing news that give us joy we are hearing about war and killings.
“We are hearing of death of children in schools. Are these things giving us peace? No. So that is why this peace project is coming at this point in time.
“As the 2023 elections is coming, youths would want to involve themselves in violent activities that is why this peace project is coming to tell them that violent activities are extremely dangerous.
“Sustaining peace and harmony will be the greatest legacy this administration and all lovers of Nigeria will give to us as children.
“We are appealing to our father, President Muhammadu Buhari, the vice-president, governors and other stakeholders to join us in this campaign.
“If America can do it we can do it too.
“America has diverse cultures and peoples from different parts of the world yet they still came together, keeping their differences aside to see that American unity is upheld.”
The peace ambassador said that she wanted to speak to the conscience of Nigerian leaders to understand that election was not a do-or-die affair.
Speaking on partnerships being made by the group, Joe-King said that she had taken her campaign to schools nationwide, establishing peace clubs in schools.
“I would also want international agencies like UNICEF, UNESCO and other organisations to partner with me.
“I’m establishing peace clubs in schools all over Nigeria, so I need volunteers to join me and I also need funding because I’m just a child, trying to carry out a big project.
According to her, I want the project to go far. I want people to see it and I want people to understand the message I’m bringing out.
“But, I cannot do that alone without funding from people. We need to see that our peace campaign gets to every school in every community.”
Joe-King, who is16 years old, says she hopes to study law to enable her carry out her advocacy and humanitarian activities, noting that she also wants to build a hospital and a school for less-privileged kids.
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She said that the foundation had also been sensitizing kids on the need to curb violence by speaking up when they notice violent acts against others because when they keep quiet they allow violence to grow and spread.
