ABUJA — The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu has called on Nigerian youths to invest their energy in innovation, entrepreneurship, technology and service instead of violence and crime. Speaking at the National Youth Leadership and Security Dialogue organized by the Nigeria Police Force for International Youth Day 2026, themed “Different Contexts, Common Aspirations,” and under the campaign “My Future Is Greater Than Political and Digital Thuggery,” the IGP said young people are Nigeria’s greatest asset for transformation. He urged them to use their ideas, influence and skills to build businesses, create technology, mobilize communities and shape public policy. “You have a choice. You can choose to be used, or you can choose to lead,” he told the gathering.
IGP Disu linked youth empowerment directly to national security, arguing that opportunities in education, skills and enterprise offer a better path than recruitment into political violence. He encouraged youths to choose peace over violence, creativity over destruction, education over criminality, and service over self-interest. The Nigeria Police Force, he said, is seeking a new partnership with young Nigerians to prevent violence, fight cybercrime, promote responsible digital citizenship, protect vulnerable persons, and strengthen peaceful participation in democracy.
With the 2027 electoral cycle approaching, the IGP warned against trading the future for short-term political patronage. “No political office is worth your life. No politician’s ambition is worth destroying your future,” he stated. Disu said he wants history to remember this generation as one that refused manipulation and chose to build rather than destroy. “Nigeria needs your ideas. Nigeria needs your creativity. Nigeria needs your innovation. Nigeria needs your leadership. CHOOSE TO BUILD. CHOOSE TO CREATE. CHOOSE TO LEAD,” he concluded.
