A tech expert, Hanson Johnson, has appealed to security agencies to stop labelling young tech talents as criminals.
Speaking in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital on Monday, Johnson, described the constant arrest and detention of young tech-savvy individuals, he referred to as ‘Tech Bros and ‘Tech Sis’ by security operatives as a case of “mistaken identity.”
He regretted that the society at large and many security operatives have failed to recognize the legitimate work the young professionals were doing, and often mistake their success for illicit activities, leading to harassment and unjust treatment.
The CEO of Start Innovation Hub, SIH, emphasized the need for proper education for security personnel to distinguish between those who are genuinely contributing to the tech industry and those who are not, adding that though some few bad eggs misuse the access, it is not an excuse to label all tech-savvy youths as criminals.
He pledged his commitment to the education of security personnel whenever possible to ensure they conduct their duties with intelligence rather than suspicion.
“Before now, wealth was seen as something you attained only after a certain age. Today, information is everywhere, and young people are using it to improve their lives.
‘’There are more intelligent ways to fetch out these people. You don’t have to harass someone to be able to identify, harass someone and jail the person before you now apologize, ‘oh sorry, we thought you were this kind of person’.
“It has even gone worse at some point that we see that even when you have proved beyond every reasonable doubt that you are not one of those people, they still harass you and extort from you.
“So, education, not on the part of the young people alone, but on the part of the security operatives will also help solve this problem.”
He said he has partnered with international organisations, the Federal Government and other corporate entities to train young Nigerians on tech-related skills.
“Some of the partnerships of SIH with the Federal Government include Innovation Development and Effectiveness in the Acquisition of Skills (IDEAS) project, and 3 Million Technical Talent Program (3MTT).” He said