8/14/2019 The kind of fathers Nigeria urgently needs

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-kind-of-fathers-nigeria-urgently-needs 1/2

The Nation - http://thenationonlineng.net/web2

The kind of fathers Nigeria urgently needs

http://thenationonlineng.net/web2/articles/22132/1/The-kind-of-fathers-Nigeria-urgently-needs/Page1.html

By Olufemi Fasanya

Published on 17/10/2009

This write-up is a product of thoughts that ran in my mind. NEPA (sorry, PHCN) had just

restored electricity after over one month of total blackout in my area because the

transformer of the section of my area was bad.

 This write-up is a product of thoughts that ran in my mind. NEPA (sorry, PHCN) had just restored electricity after over one month of total blackout in my area becausethe transformer of the section of my area was bad. When the power was restored,there were spontaneous screams of joy from people. I got up from the bed and

peeped outside to ascertain that it wasn’t the generator that was on. Yes, it was lightfrom the almighty NEPA/PHCN. My wife told me to switch on the refrigerators, andafterwards, I went to the sitting room to work on my laptop. But before you can say

 Jack Robinson, the light was gone as it came.

 Thoughts that ran in my mind bordered on the discussion I had with some elderlypeople recently. An elderly lady (she was over 70) responded to the question I askedon the state of Nigeria in their days. She said back in those days, Nigeria was farbetter than what it is now. There were jobs for even those that were just leavingsecondary schools; life was far easier, and people could afford the basic necessitiesof life conveniently. From the look on her eyes, you would see that the Nigeria of today isn’t something that she imagined would happen, even long time after her lifetime.

Some couple of hours before writing this article, I was in the home of one of theyoung people I am mentoring. Her parents were at the dinning table when her dadbegan to talk about some of his experiences in life; the struggles he went throughand how his lot eventually changed for good over a period of time of hardwork andopportunities that he made best use of.

In the course of the discussion, he said, back in the early days, there was nothingcalled Tokunbo. According to him, what you bought was either brand new or youbought it as second-hand use from another person who bought it new. He wonderedhow today, Tokunbo things seem to be the most valued items.

I remember back in the late 70s and early 80s (I was in my late 30s then), parentsweren’t in doubt that their children would get quality education from public schoolsdespite the fact that education was free then. I remember being given free notebooks and writing sets in my primary school days. I remember the screams thatusually attend power outage in the country today were not really there then becausethere was rarely power outage for a long time.

 The current situation in the country gives cause for concern. My son (the first)attends a private school, NEPA is far worse than in my early years (I tell people, whenthe light comes on, they shouldn’t scream up N-E-P-A because before they end being

8/14/2019 The kind of fathers Nigeria urgently needs

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-kind-of-fathers-nigeria-urgently-needs 2/2

 joyous, the light may be gone again). The rate of unemployment is high; the crimeand cultism rates amongst young people are alarming. So, the future seems so blinkfor the nation and the generation of our children except something urgent is donefast to salvage this situation. That is my reason for writing this.

I feel fathers have the responsibility of directing the course their children should take.

 The decadence we see today is a by- product of what has gone wrong with our valuesystem. In the leadership of this nation, men (fathers) have been actively involved inthe helm of affair. Imagine a father who takes up a leadership position and profit by itwithout being prosecuted for his misdeed; what is he teaching his children?

I had a discussion with a guy recently. His words were that from the locality he camefrom, their parents don’t give a damn about how they make money, but that theyshould make it and drive big cars to their village. What value system are theseparents developing in their children? A couple of years ago, if a child drove a solid carwhich his income couldn’t get and he didn’t have another legitimate means of earning money to buy it, he would be disowned by his father because he wanted thename of his family to be remain unblemished. But today, we are in a period of ‘anything goes’.

Little wonder the present generation is so restless and some of the younger ones areentrenched in vices that are unimaginable. For instace, the rate 419 is high, suchthat the nation is noted for it all over the world. The same thing goes for prostitution.A good chunk of people who are involve in these vices are young, active men andwomen. If you take your time to visit cyber cafes, you will almost get into a repulsivestate with the number of young people whose aim is to get rich overnight notbothering if someone else will be hurt.

My prayer is that some years from now, my sons will say that Nigeria is far betterthan the days of my father. I dream of a nation, the raw materials of which will beharnessed and judiciously used; a nation in which you can walk freely without beingharassed by hoodlums (area boys) either in plain clothes or uniform. A nation where

people who are given leadership roles will work selflessly to better the lot of thepeople they are called to serve; a nation free of ethnic or religious war; a nationwhere no one will be above the law.

I know these will remain tall dreams if fathers don’t take up their leadership role notonly in the family, but personally in the lives of their children. They will be tall dreamsexcept fathers teach their children the value systems of the old religions thatbelieved in hardwork, creativity, respect for others, honesty, integrity, etc., and bydoing what can be emulated.

Don’t forget that children learn what they live.