The future has always been said to belong to the youths. However, there is a huge rejoinder.
What is the fate of the youths and possible hope of succession of the outgoing generations with the prevalence of crime, immorality and all sorts of deviations from sanity such as hard drugs?
While social media seems to flash loud headlines daily on various troubling stories of underaged youths and minors across the world indulge in various unprintable vices, the question of ‘who is to blame’ becomes recurrent on the lips of many.
A typical example is the trending story of a 10 year-old pupil of Chrisland Schools, which literally set the social media on fire, silencing all other headlines especially the late Osinachi’s case and the screaming headlines of the Russia-Ukraine onslaught, which had become seemingly the most trended of the month.
Well, doubtlessly, the shock of seeing a ‘minor’ in a pornographic video sent wrong signals about the inadequacies of early childhood training and where the faults may have emanated from.
Recall that between March 10 and 13, Chrisland Schools were said to have traveled to Dubai for World Games and while there, a video emerged online from popular entertainment entrepreneur that the girl was gangraped after being drugged by a group of boys during a truth or dare game.
Reactions from the public however casted the questions of the girls age with her looks and activeness in the s*x video, which many say didn’t have any trace of being under a violent or compulsive control by the boys in the video.
Other social media facts however emerging said the girl was not raped as claimed but has a long history of perversion as she has a social media page of a popular site with huge followership.
On this site, the youngster, whose real name is still shrouded in mystery, bears the name ‘Bhardgurl4k’ and releases erotic videos while amassing strong followership.
Without dwelling on the stories emerging on this youngster, whose mum insists her daughter was raped during the Dubai outing, the stones have been cast on parenthood and failing responsibilities.
This is with others saying the internet and social media has become too porous and a
To seek opinions of the public on this topic, KAFTAN Post pitched some teachers and parents against each other in an informal neighborhood debate.
Caroline Eteh is a middle-aged mother of two who believes the schools has not done enough.
“I have a daughter and a son and have vowed to remove them from the school they currently attend.
“I went to pick my kids one day and saw the teacher watching Zeeword on their TV in the classroom with a decoder provided for access to other educational programs and cartoons.
“I was speechless and stood at the window for over five minutes. It was sad because I share some closeness with the teacher who happens to be from Edo State too where I hail from.
“If these children at the age of five and six could be comfortably seated and watching a program rated for adults, then imagine what their minds would be exposed to,” she added angrily.
The society has also been plagued with the negative side of technology especially on children. While many applaud the growth, others see parents exposing children to risks of negative contents at their early age.
This view was shared by Justina who works as a househelp.
“I don’t blame the schools at all for the decadence in morals but parents. I work for a big man who is very rich.
“If you see the kind of phones they use. Sometimes they laugh at my torchlight phone (a common way if referring to non-android phones).
“At 12, they already use Google ready smart TVs and can search on any movie on NETFLIX.
“Severally they call me old school, not because I am not educated even though I have my OND, but because they feel ‘they know more than I know’ and this saddens me”, Justina added.
While many see the home as the first classrooms with the parents as the first teachers, an argument tilts towards peer influence as a factor to be considered.
Niyi is a former social worker and practicing journalist. He said parents should check the friends their wards keep.
“There is a certain boy I once taught home lessons during his junior WAEC. He used to be a brilliant boy in primary school until he joined a gang I later discovered were Yahoo boys (internet fraudsters).
“One day, I curiously asked him plans for his higher education and he laughed and said, ‘Bros, no be school dey make person blow (meaning it’s not education that guarantees a successful future)’.
“I was disturbed by that response and couldn’t summon words to reply him as I smiled sheepishly as they walked away dragging their beltless trousers down into the streets with their eyes glued to their phones and keypads typing speedily”. Niyi said.
Without mincing words, the level of rot and societal decadence has rubbed off on the young and vulnerable. What is the expected character of a girl who sees her mother wear skimpy skirts and revealing outfits?
What future is expected of a boy who helps his father get his wraps of heroine and lighter?
The Chrisland story is just a reminder of how much the society may have lost its grip on the sanity of the succeeding and unborn generation.
Several legislations have been made by the global community concerning social media.
The European Union approved new legislation that would pressure big tech giants like Meta, Google and Twitter to enforce illegal content on their platforms or potentially risk paying billions in fines.
After about 16 hours of negotiations, the EU reached a deal early Saturday in Brussels on the Digital Services Act, a landmark law requiring companies to more aggressively police their content and take down anything deemed harmful or illegal quickly.
“Our new rules will protect users online, ensure freedom of expression and opportunities for businesses,” EU President Ursula von der Leyen tweeted.
“What is illegal offline will effectively be illegal online in the EU. A strong signal for people, business & countries worldwide.”
Experts believe that to secure a productive and healthy future has to start from early childhood education, which is not just from the homes but the classroom environments.
