“We have to learn better ways of resolving disputes using ADR because the solution to every problem is in the problem,’’ says Ogochukwu Nweke, a legal practitioner.
He said this in a lecture at the Eagles Summit Africa, a youth development summit at the Zenith University College in Accra on Saturday, on the theme, “Rethinking our priorities”
He advised the youth to use Appropriate Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanisms to resolve conflicts and societal problems.
“As Africans, we need to redefine the way we resolve conflicts,” he said.
Mr. Ogochukwu reminded the younger generation that violence is not the solution to resolving problems.
According to him, any adversarial approach towards solving problems, often worsens the situation or creates problems in the future since that approach does not tackle the root cause of the challenge.
“The interest we seek to protect is not important than the relationship we have to build and sustain,” he emphasised.
He said the aggressive and violent nature in responding to problems at home, the work place and the community in general, results in domestic abuse, poor interpersonal relationship and weak management-worker relationship which is not the best.
“We can’t continue to be militants in a knowledge revolution,” he noted, and urged the students to be agents of change in that regard.
Mr. Ogochukwu also advocated for a reform in the educational system of Africa, indicating that most of the things taught in the schools originated from countries outside Africa, where the curriculum was developed to solve peculiar challenges facing them.
“We cannot use foreign solutions to solve African problems,” he said.
In that regard, he called for a redefined African identity and an educational system that would solve critical developmental issues.
Other speakers at the Summit included Majid Michel, a renowned actor and Ebi Bright, an actress and a politician, who both inspired the students to aspire
Ms. Bright urged the students and the youth in general, to avoid laziness since that remains a major problem hindering Africa’s progress.
“We have to be greedy and hungry for success by thinking outside the box and taking advantage of our talents,” she said.
By: Fred Gadese-Mensah /adrdaily.com
