I'm sure everyone of you undergraduates has seen at least one of the photos of heaps of Nigerian youths crammed morguelike into tiny, dingy spaces at INEC offices and decrepit primary and secondary schools across the country last night in preparation for election duty today.


What we see these pictures is an index of our poverty and the emptiness of our education in Nigeria.


My heart sincerely goes out to all the Nigerian youths who are currently victims of pervasive poverty in the world's sixth largest oil-producing country.


Hey, don't be deceived by Nigeria's touted rank as Africa's largest producer of oil and gas and the world sixth largest, Nigeria isn't really rich because we do almost nothing else besides suckling on the dripping nipples of Niger Delta. Besides, remember we're the world's 'most populous black nation' with one of the world's highest unemployment rates.


Forget the false figures they bandy about on radio, TV and the internet as unemployment rate. If you want to know the real unemployment rate, take pen and paper, sit down and list names of twenty of those with whom you left school. List the ones you're currently in touch with and classify them into 'employed' and 'unemployed'. Then make few extrapolations and you'll have an idea of the unproductive fraction of the country's population.


What do we do? Ask the motivational speakers. For me, I think it's an urgent wake-up call as well as a huge lesson for the current undergraduates.


Dear Undergraduate, I might sound like I'm talking down on you but I want you to know that I'm sorry for my inability to patronize you this time around. I must tell you to begin to create options so you don't leave school only to fall victim to the widespread private and institutionalised exploitation which starts innocuously as NYSC.


At NYSC, almost every graduate's self-worth usually drops precipitously in the first six months. After teaching in a private or public school for a monthly salary of N3,000 and following the principal about for three months in pursuit of N18,000 being half of your annual salary still being owed you, you tend to change your expectations and begin to panel-beat your ambitions. You begin to doubt if dignity is for you after all. You're unknowingly undergoing dangerous indoctrination. By the way, I didn't forget that corps members also receive N19,800 for the FG. And so what?


Now, you that are still in school, stop memorizing only hand-outs and other tinkered materials in desperate pursuit of 2-1. Go out of your way and learn a skill. Don't let religious activities and movies and games gulp all your time. From the current look of things, undergrad days are no longer for enjoyment and concoction of lies to fleece our parents of every kobo they mine out of the rock-hard economy.


(I know you want me to list those skills I suggest you acquire but you see, I don't have a ready spoon to feed anyone. Look around. Think. However, you can reach me inbox for free counselling; I can offer you that bit.)


Take the ASUU strike that just ended for instance, it was protapracted enough for any foresighted undergraduate to have attempted to learn a particular skill. I don't how many tried it.


Let me tell you, parents, elder brothers and sisters feel bad when they continually support graduates many years after NYSC, simply because 10 million of them are still 'praying and believing God for something' while following politicians about for 2,000 white-collar job opportunities.


If you're an undergraduate, stop wasting your time chatting up everyone on Whatsapp and Facebook. You don't owe the 1,000 people who commented on your post a response. If you're interested in testing your English, write stories and produce manuscripts. When you're good enough, publish books and advertise them here and I'll buy. Stop andhahaha-ing on every post, and exploding with bile on others.


Get a mentor. Have people you respect and let them guide you. Invest in yourself, now, Dear Undergraduate