THEME: OWN THE FUTURE

TOPIC: “THE ECONOMY AND NATION BUILDING”

SPEAKER: ADETOKUNBO OLUFELA DUROTOYE

(PRESIDENT OF THE GEMSTONE NATION BUILDERS FOUNDATION)

VENUE: RCCG CENTRAL PARISH, 1249 AMINU KANO CRESCENT, WUSE, ABUJA – NIGERIA.

DATE: 20TH JULY, 2019

SHORT PROFILE OF THE SPEAKER:

ADETOKUNBO OLUFELA DUROTOYE is a Business Consultant, Leadership Expert, and Revolutionary Speaker. Fela is the President of the GEMSTONE Nation Builders Foundation, a Non-profit, Non-governmental Organization targeted at training youths towards Transformational Leadership and Social Change.

He has being at the forefront of the Movement to build a New Nigeria for over a decade. He has won several National and International Awards for his Leadership Development and Nation Building Activities.

Durotoye holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Computer Science and Economics, along with a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (M.B.A) from the prestigious Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. Where he wrote His MBA Theses on the Management of Change and Complex Organization.

He is also an alumnus of John F. Kennedy School of Government. Executive Education Program of the prestigious Harvard University.

He has completed the High Impart Leadership for a better Society Program at the prestigious Yale University.

He has also attended, the Future Candidate Program of the Leadership Institute, Bolton Virginia. All in the United States of America. In addition to being a certified Leadership Coach of the John Maxwell Team.

He is married to Tara, a renowned Business Entrepreneur and Chief Executive Officer of the “House of Tara”. And together they have three (3) sons who think their Dad is a Super Hero.

Join me this morning as I make welcome Fela Durotoye; speaking on the topic: “THE ECONOMY AND NATION BUILDING”.

Thank you very much! And a very good morning to everyone who is here live in the Abuja Centre, and all those who are streaming and syndicating across the  Nation and across the world. Am excited to be here and indeed, and am excited about what God is doing in this time.

You know, for me, I think the first thing is to acknowledge the great work that the Leadership Team, led by the National Director of the IGNITE Program, as well as the Body of Christ. Especially within this particular Family – The Redeemed Christian Church of God; the works we are doing!

Please put those hands together; first, for our Father in the Faith and then to our National Director and the Leadership Team. Thank you very much, everyone!

My name is Fela Durotoye, as it has been said. You know, I have been introduced severally by different things. Some people have introduced me as an Inspirational Speaker, a Motivational Speaker, a Transformational Speaker. I think over the last couples of month I have now been hearing this new one ” “Revolutionary Speaker”.

But at the core of my heart, I am a “Nation Builder”.

Professionally, I am a Business Consultant and a Leadership Expert. But I was born 48 years ago (in 1971) to a couple of Lecturers who were at that time in the University of Toronto Canada. And just before I was born (and many people have heard this story tale) my father had a dream while he was in Canada about a Month before I was born, and told my mother that it was time for them to go back to Nigeria to have this baby.

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You know, so many times when I look at it, I ask myself; what kind of nightmare did my father have, that would have caused him to sacrifice the supposedly wellbeing of his son being born in Canada, to decide that they would like to come back to Nigeria?

So the way I like to say it is: I was conceived in Canada, and I was received in Oluyole Ibadan (Nigeria).

But I will tell you something that’s very important; and the fact is, you know, when I think back at it: my father did not think that he was doing something that was going to be disadvantageous to me. He wasn’t trying in anyway to put me and my future in any disadvantage.

In 1961, most people will say for you to have graduated from the University College Ibadan (now University of Ibadan) you won’t even write any other examination to be able to gain admission into any of the prestigious Universities in the United Kingdom and some in the United States. Because we were at par in terms of quality of education.

I will give you a more strategic data driven information that you might use: As at March 24, 1971 (the year that I was born) a Nigerian Pound was exchanging for three (3) US Dollars. Meaning if you went to a Bureau de change, you took one hundred (100) Nigerian Pounds, you will get three hundred (300) US Dollars (in 1971).

By the time I was five (5) years old in 1976; in exchange for the Naira (yes, we have lost value), one (1) Naira was still exchanging for fifty (50) cents. Which means if you took one hundred Naira (N100) in 1976 you will get one hundred and thirty three (133) US Dollars.

And then something happened, and over a period of about thirty (30) years, we saw (somehow) an Economic Meltdown glory and it reflected in our Currency. So that by March 24 2006; you needed one hundred and thirty three (133) Naira to get one (1) Dollar. And ten (10) years later, by March 24 2016, you now needed three hundred and thirty one Naira (N331) to get one (1) US Dollar.

And I don’t know if it can be shown on the screen, some kind of trend that we see here! Can you see what they are showing? Look at it, on the same day over the years: 1976 1 to 133; 2006 now 133 Naira to 1 Dollar. 2016, 331 Naira to 1 Dollar. And you know, many people have been able to explain different kinds of things;

They have talked about Governance, Poor Economic Policies. But one (1) interesting thing that we can talk about is the fact that, no matter what explanation our Nation will use in deriving what happened here, we CANNOT CHANGE THE PAST!

And I think that once we understand that we cannot change the past, the question now would be: What do we do about the future? Because the question is not about what happened in 1976 or 2016; the real question is: what would the exchange rate be by March 24, 2026 (7 years from now)?

What will it be? This is the real conversation that we need to have now.

There are two (2) Schools of Thought that usually come in; there are some who say “Qui sera sera” (What will be. Will be). But anyone who sings that song also usually says: the future I cannot see.

So only those who decide that the future  belongs to them, are the ones who determine the future. Meaning that you cannot own the future until you do four (4) Important Things; I calls them A, B, C, D!

1. “A” – Those who would “Own the Future” must first, ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE FUTURE.

When God said to Noah, as long as the Heaven and Earth shall remain; seedtime and harvest time shall not cease.

And what He was saying to Noah was essentially: that listen, Am giving you the Power to determine your harvest by simply identifying what seed will produce it. I promise you as God, if you plant Tomatoes, you will not reap Potatoes. I Promise you as God, if you plant Apple, you will not reap Tomatoes.

So now, the future is up to you. The future has no right to catch you by surprise. And this is extremely important; you must ACCEPT responsibility for the future. And those who will see the future of Nigeria must ACCEPT Responsibility for the wellbeing of Nigeria.

They must be able to say: No matter how well I am doing, if my Nation Nigeria is not doing well enough; then I am not doing well enough!

2. The next thing that you will realise about the people who would “Own the Future” is that they must BELIEVE.

They must BELIEVE in their capacity to be able to shake the future. They must understand!

You know, a lot of people have being taking about how we have in Governance people who are “Older Generation”. But what we fail to understand is that many of them were young when they became Leaders.

Must of the people today who are the leading Guys in Business; you know Tony Elumelu for instance was thirty three (33) years old when he became Bank MD. Mike Imukadi was thirty four (34) old. Fola Adeola was under Forty (40) when he started Guaranteed Trust Bank. So when you look at the way Banking has been shaped by young people.

The Head of State in 1976 was thirty nine (39) years old (when Olusegun Obasanjo became Head of State). The current President in 1986 was literally two (2) weeks into his forty first (41) birthday when he became Head of State.

This thing about young people thinking that they don’t have the capacity. There is a Generation that assure you; you have to BELIEVE in yourself. So am asking every young person that is here, please BELIEVE in yourself. BELIEVE in your capacity.

When God was speaking to Jeremiah in Jeremiah chapter one (1) he was very quick in verse 6 to say: “Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.” But God said to him: Keep quiet! Don’t ever look down on yourself again; don’t ever call yourself a Youth again; don’t ever doubt what you can do.

“See, I have this day set thee over the Nations and over the Kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.”

I’m speaking to a New Generation of Leaders in Nigeria – ARISE! IGNITE, let the fire burn in you; for this day the Lord has set you over Nations. But you must stand let the Light in you SHINE!

3. The third thing that I want to leave with you is; you must COMMIT. And you must COMMIT totally your Energy, your Resources.

“Everything that you would do to get to the future you desured is going to require something that you have today”. I promise you, God does not require anything that you don’t have to deliver the future that you need.

So it is important that you know, that whether it’s a business that you are going to start. Whether it’s the way in the Industry.

There’s a story that talks about how the Bank MDs, Tony Elemelu during his Induction they asked at that time: What do you want to be? And he said: I am a Bank MD in the making. He was not looking for a job in the Bank, he didn’t just start his career; in his mind he was already Bank MD.

So I need you to be able to understand that! And the greatest resources that you are going to COMMIT is your time, your energy and your resources.

4. And the last that you have to do if you would ” Own the Future”; you must DELIVER!

You must be determined to do everything. It will not be easy, you will suffer many setbacks.

“… But when God shows you something, you have to follow through”.

You must be ready to DELIVER the future.

It is extremely important that you have to understand this. And for me, I believe that those who would deliver the future are those who would have this capacity.

I want to show you something very quickly; it’s a very short video. I hope they are able to transmit it as quickly as possible. But it shows the mindset of a Leader who is able to accept responsibility for a problem he did not cause. He Believes that somewhere inside of him: “… Greater is he that is in me, than the challenges outside”.

… And then he was able to DELIVER.

Mobilize people, and see how we can solve the problem in Agriculture. How can we be having Security Challenges? And yet we know that yes, defence may seem to be something that is held by the Military. But we also know that the greatest ideas that came into the United States after the 9/11 Attacks  came from the Private Sector.

It is the Private Sector that accept the responsibility that says: we must find a creative way to solve this problems.

One hundred and eighty (180) million people are homeless in Nigeria. That is an Economic Opportunity to those who will accept responsibility to say: we will provide Low Cost Housing.

… It is going to happen to those who can believe.

God will make sure that the Provision shows up when your obedience is in motion. But you must find: “Where is the place that you are Assigned?” It’s not every problem that you have being created to solve.

It is only the one that you have already been ENDUED with Talents, with Personality, with Passion. Those are the ones that you are called to. It is the problems that frustrates you; those are the problems you are called to.

And  every time that each and every one of us begins to find solution to problems, we will create Values. And once we create Values, we will ultimately be rewarded with wealth!

If we can maintain and multiply that wealth properly, we will (no doubt) multiply our wealth into prosperity that will flow across our Nation.

Nigeria is too blessed to be poor!

We are undoubtedly one of the Blessed Nations on the face of Planet Earth. But we must solve problems!

Let’s be clear about something: “The VALUE that is tied to the SOLUTION that you bring is to a large extend determined by the kind of problem that you solve”.

But where the problems exist in Healthy Care (people are dying). The chances of a woman surviving childbirth is the lowest in Nigeria. Where there are over thirteen (13) Million Children out of school. And we are to understand that we can solve this problems. Where twenty one (21) Million Graduates cannot find a job; ten (10) Million of them have never worked before.

These are problems that we cannot leave to Government. Accept and “Own that Future” and save it.

If there is a future that we see in our hearts; it must be a future of a Prosperous Nation. A desiring Nation to live in.

God has blessed Nigeria enough, for Nigeria to be one of the great Countries. But it is not going to happen, because we run away from Nigeria. It is going to happen because we stay and we solve the problem.

… We must SOLVE THE PROBLEM!

And that is why it is important for us to IGNITE our Light. That the light in us must shine as we ARISE!

Distinguished Ladies and  Gentlemen, let me be clear about something; and I believe this is the way Nelson Mandela put it, he said: Sometimes it falls upon a Generation to be Great. He said, yours can be that Great Generation. But you must let your Greatness blossom.

There is a generation that is being called to IGNITE. It is a GREAT generation. But you must ARISE:

1. You must be a Solution Provider, and never be a part of the problem to be SOLVED!

… To be that Generation; that great Generation that “Owns  the Future”.

2. You must be your best. GIVE your best EVERYDAY, to what you do; particularly things you are Naturally good at. Find the problem that uses your Natural Gifting and your Talent and your Passion.

3. But the third most important thing is that you must (repeated) Build a great Legacy starting now and everyday!

What is your Legacy? Your Legacy is simply what you leave behind after you have left. And it is not only when you die that you are leaving a Legacy. You can meet someone and make such a positive impart on that person – that, you have already left a Legacy!

Your Legacy usually reflect in the kind of memory that the people have about you. And many times your Legacy will determine the name that people call you and what happens to them.

Listen! Depending on the impact that you make on people; your name will either be a Key or a Padlock! And you have to leave a positive impact on people.

And this is how we are going to “Own the Future”: “We must leave Nigeria a better place than we were born into it.”

As I close; let me quickly just share with you that there are Nations that have accepted responsibility, and they had no resources. One of those Nations is the Nation called Singapore.

And there is a picture that I hope that they can quickly get for me. I will show you a picture of Singapore in 1960 (I want you to take a look at the water that you see there. If somebody came back to the same exact location and took a picture, forty something years later. And because a Generation has accepted responsibility (believe in themselves) committed and did everything they delivered.

… I want you to watch everything they have made in one (1) Generation.

Now, that generation has built Singapore; they have the largest number of Billionaires in US Dollars par Capital. And yet Singapore does not have any single Mineral Resources.

… I want to show another quick one before I close:

If look at Dubai in 1990; and a picture was taken a few years later (13 years later) of the same  building. And this is what you see. Look at that!

I want you to see that the greatest Economic Value that any Generation can have: it is National Transformation!

Think about it, look at all those houses.

Remember that to build those houses there were jobs: there were Bricklayers, there were Plumbers, there were Tilers, there were Electricians.

Nigeria needs right now Thirty Three (33) Million Houses to be built! To get one hundred and eight (108) rich Nigerians Power; that’s a very be Economic Opportunity.

We need Power, not just from the National Breed, we need Power from Solar, we need Power from hydro. We can do these things!

If you look at their Airports, you see something one Generation has been able to do. This was the kind of Airport that one Generation inherited. And they have nothing, except Sun, Sand and Sea.

To cut a long story short: in one Generation look out what they have been able to build. This is what happens when a Generation: “Owns its Future” – Accept responsibility, Believed, Commits and determine to do everything to the DELIVERED!

And am challenging everyone that is under the sound of my voice (or reading) “Let us Own the future, because the future of Nigeria is truly great”.

We have been so blessed by God, and all we have to do is: WE HAVE TO DELIVER THE FUTURE.

God bless you! And God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Thank you!

Thank you so much for staying all through to read.

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