2019: Word to Nigerian youths
SIR: The rescheduled presidential and national assembly elections are here with us and I feel compelled once more to offer a word of caution to Nigerians, especially, the youths, as I did four years ago with an article entitled,
Indeed, these are desperate times. Activities in the thick bushes are on the increase. Reports of men, women, youths and children disappearing with alarming regularity are bloodcurdling and causing many hearts to fail. Kidnappers have become more creative and are spreading their dragnets. The amount of blood being wasted in this country daily should even be alarming to the blood-spillers themselves, if they could just pause awhile to ponder their damnable exploits.
We are told through the confessions of apprehended culprits and testimonies of lucky survivors that all these atrocities are sometimes some of the various conditions desperadoes are asked to fulfill if they must realise their egregious desires for fame, wealth and power. So, driven by the desperation to realise their hideous goals, they throw caution to the wind and undertake whatev- er evil they are asked to execute.
They are not deterred by the dire consequences that might follow if they are caught. In Nigeria, impunity often walks on all four, and people are often emboldened to indulge in whatever evil that catches their fancy, because, instances where unwholesome actions are met with commensurate consequences are often very rare. What should one expect in a country where corrupt leaders are showcased as saints and even those who qualify to be classified as terrorists are enjoying high class protection and privileges.
I grew up with a firm belief that adults don’t lie. This was reinforced by the way children were sternly rebuked and punished for lying, mostly, in attempts to exonerate themselves when they had done something bad. Sadly, today, I now know better as I see most adults, even ‘big’ ones, flagrantly lying, thereby, teaching young people never to admit their errors and faults just to remain ‘relevant’. What a legacy being passed down?
At our tender ages, we saw men and women who regarded old age as a period of making amends, pursuing peace, uniting communities and mentoring young adults to become good leaders. They knew that there was the Great Beyond to prepare for and went ahead doing so. Today, what we have is an aberration. Old men, often referred to as ‘elder statesmen’ and ‘honourable’ men engage in wars, abusing and rubbishing themselves in the name of politics, because wealth, power and fame have blinded the eyes of many to the fact they are, indeed, old and should take time to prepare for life beyond here, while at the same time helping to create an atmosphere conducive for sustaining their good works at the hands of the next generation. Unfortunately, it looks like they are not desirous of having successors. When and where they even allow that, they would insist on those successors having them as god-fathers, so, they could remote-control them from the comfort of their homes. It would seem that they have meanwhile escaped the consequences of their evils. But our discourse today ought to be food for thought for today’s youths.