Speaker Yakubu Dogara

Yakubu Dogara, Speaker, House of Representatives, has called on the critics of the All Progressives Congress-led administration to stop blaming the government for the current economic challenges facing Nigeria.

Dogara made the call in a statement signed by Mr Turaki Hassan, his Special Adviser, Media and Public Affairs and issued to newsmen on Tuesday in Abuja.

The statement said Dogara made the statement when he received unemployed Aeronautic Engineers and Pilots from Bauchi State who paid him a courtesy visit.

He said that instead of the blaming the APC-led government, the people who brought Nigeria to its current state should be blamed.

Dogara said that the Buhari-led government was working hard to sanitise the system, adding that it would take some time to achieve the objective.

“You know that we are facing challenges in the country at the moment.

“Even though people do not want to talk about on the ground that we campaigned that we are going to fix the country,’’he said.

“We have sowed in the wind and we are now reaping whirlwind and as long as the earth abides, there will be seed time and harvest time.

“We do not want to dwell in the past, we are facing the future,’’ he said.

The speaker urged unemployed youths in the country not to despair and assured them that government was doing everything possible to create job opportunities.

“Investment in education, skills and knowledge is never a wasted investment,’’ he said and expressed optimism in the ability of the government to reduce unemployment in the country.

“Don’t despair because no training is wasted; but it is our responsibility to open the private sector for job opportunities,’’ he said.

He urged Nigerians to join hands with the government to sanitise the system to enable it create job opportunities, especially for the youth.

“If youths are not employed, it will be a disservice to the society as well as discouragement to the graduates, ’’he said.

Speaking earlier, the leader of the team, Capt. Bala Jibrin, said that the pilots and Aeronautic Engineers, who were sponsored by Bauchi State Government to acquire knowledge in the United States, graduated in 2011.

Jibrin, who said that the pilots and Aeronautic Engineers had been unemployed since their arrival in the country, requested the speaker to facilitate their employment.

He said that Bauchi government spent N1 billion to train the 20 youths drawn from the 20 Local government areas of the state.