Nigerian youths

BY Zik GBEMRE

A post on a social media platform by an anonymous person, recently caught my attention, and it touched on the subject matter which I believe is worth being considered and given attention. According to the said post, the individual noted how he remembered some very sad incident he encountered coming and leaving Cairo, Egypt some time ago. And that is, he could not believe the number of Indian labourers on the flight going to Nigeria. When he asked a few of them what was their mission in Nigeria, he was told they were recruited to work at Dangote refinery. Now, the obvious question is, don’t we have able bodied Nigerians youths to fill the same vacancies? The post further noted that, the most shocking bit was at the airport when he asked an official why is Dangote recruiting such number of people from outside Nigeria and not within the country – only to be told these ones were the fifth batch of over 300 people to come in that particular week.

While we do not know how authentic and true the said reported post is, but it is something that we condemn, and would never support. However, we also need to tell ourselves the truth. Which is the fact that, looking at our present generation of Nigerian youths. Most of them do not want to work hard to earn a living. Most of them do not believe in the principle of hard work, integrity, endurance, consistency, patience and being steadfast when it comes to pursuing career or business success to become somebody in the society. Yet, they want to drive the best/latest cars, use the latest mobile phones, wear the best designer clothes, and what have you. In fact, majority of them just want free money, without working hard for it. As such, they are ready to cut-corners and do the unthinkable just to make quick money. That is the only reason why foreigners, are now the ones taking most of the jobs in the country.

Take the Niger Delta region for instance, where most Community jobs available in the oil and gas sector, which are available for the Niger Delta youths, are often sold to others that are willing to do the work, while the real owners of the work prefer the monthly salary cuts they get, or the money they get from outrightly selling their job slots to money lenders. Some of these set of youths, prefer being ‘ghost workers’. In fact, what we know today as ghost workers, can arguably be said to have originated from the Niger Delta region. And it started like play in the oil host communities, where by oil and gas companies’ contractors are compelled to employ locals, who never show up for work but earn monthly salaries. My personal experience in employing local labour within the region, has not been a palatable one over the years. It has been a frustrating experience, especially when it comes to trying to get the ‘best persons’ to deliver a particular job as intended. In most cases, these youths help in ruining your company and the entire job/business. One begins to wonder what exactly is happening in all the oil and gas producing Communities in the Niger Delta area. This has made most businessmen or investors, to prefer importing/hiring labourers/workers from outside, especially if they are not compelled to employ local labour. Even as minor as tiling jobs, carpentry, etc. – outsiders are the ones who are readily available and engaged to do them for us here in the city of Warri and environs.

Bursting of crude oil pipelines have been made an active business in these parts of the country. Oil theft/pipeline vandalization and illegal bunkering, do not only damage the ecological environment, it also has many negative attributes which affect the economy. Yet, the youths engage in this illegal trade and self-immolation, without thinking of the dire consequences. In most oil host Communities in the Niger Delta, if you give the youths jobs, they often times do not show up, but they still want to get paid for not working. The only way the Contractor to deliver is to hire outsiders, while the community youths would want to come and collect salaries at the end of the month. Thereby forcing the Contractor to run double expenses just to execute a small contract. Often times, the Contractor will be compelled by the Community Executives to pay young men who are not willing to work. The host Community elders and leaders also encourage this because they are part of those who must get a share of the salaries of the ghost workers. If not, the Contractor’s project site will be closed, or the project unnecessarily prolonged. With all of this, most Contractors in this part of the country end up in debts. But do we expect the Oil Companies and their Contractors to encourage the payment of “ghost workers” when given jobs that the workers will not do, but still expect salaries? Many of the youths do not even want to work if offered job opportunities. Yet, they want free money.

What our Niger Delta youths, most of whom only want free money, are very good at doing is to ‘escort politicians’ as bouncers/political thugs. The attitude of the Nigerian youths towards making a living, especially those from the South-South region, is really nothing to write home about. It is appalling to note that some of these Nigerian youths have just become too lazy and prefers the ‘easy path’ to success in life than paying the price of hard work, diligence, patience and integrity to make it. Some of them prefer begging and hailing Nigerian politicians and big men, especially those in this part of the country, with praises like ‘Ose’ – meaning Father, all in attempt to be given free money for their pockets and “grooving”. But how long will these Nigerian youths be looking for such ‘free money’?

Today, it is also funny that the same youths who claim that the Nigerian politicians are the ones who usually use them in snatching ballot boxes or cause other electoral malpractices during elections, and later dump them after elections, are also the ones who have willingly agreed to play such thuggery roles. They allow themselves to be used by these old Nigerian politicians, and they still complain at the end of the day after taking Greek gifts. As a result of making themselves ‘idle’ and ‘unproductive to the society’, these Nigerian youths have made themselves available to be used by non-performing Nigerian politicians to actualize their selfish agendas. Many of them also, who prefer to walk on the fast-lane of life, have resorted to being ‘Yahoo-boys’ in perpetrating cyber-crimes.

Now, the latest one is being a ‘Malian’. In fact, the Marlian movement has become a virusa and cult ravaging the Nigerian youths today. It is like a showdown with, or affront to parents, as they are not prepared at all for the sorts of mannerlessness their children are exhibiting before them. The singer, Azeez Adeshina Fashola, popularly known as Naira Marley, who has always been in the news for the wrong reasons, is the one behind this latest madness exhibited by the Nigerian youths. The said singer is creating an army of youths called Marlians. His songs and dance steps are inspiring a new generation of “morally deficit youths”, and it seems the youth would be in his grip for a long time, except something serious is done. Our problem with some of the current artists in the entertainment industry is that they do not possess the necessary depth needed to model the Nigerian youth. Most of them are so shallow, worldly, materialistic and devoid of necessary values needed to build the next generation. It is appalling to know that the artists that many of our youths are looking up to do not possess the virtues and values sacrosanct to youth development. Who would then teach the youngsters values? Is it the Nigerian artists, with the evolution of morally bankrupt and deficit songs? I doubt it!

The Nigerian younger generation must be careful in these times, and start bracing up to take-up the challenges ahead of them. They must exhibit the ‘maturity’ and develop the ability to defer instant gratification, and not react to years of deprivation, by selling their loftiest dreams for a mess of pottage – a few dollars. They should not be too taken by material things still. It should not be all about Moet, Hennessy, Champagne, fast cars, huge mansions, and varieties of women. We see these things in the songs they sing and dance to. Immorality is becoming them, and a majority of them just don’t bother to think. Those who do, are concerned with the self. They want to game the system, cheat and take undue advantage of everyone else. But ultimately, they will be shooting themselves in the foot. It is sad enough that most Nigerian youths are so disconnected from political happenings and government’s activities they do not know or care how they are being governed. Social networks like Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, Eskimi, 2go, etc. show obviously that Nigerian youths are “very low in quality”. The way they argue blindly with whatever, insult and attack each other on salient national issues shouldn’t be the reason for pride. If anything, they should be seen brainstorming together to address the ills in their society. The reason this country is moving a step forward then four steps backwards is because WE LACK VIBRANT AND INFORMED YOUTHS. The youths are supposed to be the centre of gravity of the society. The youths should be the ‘life’ of a society. The youths should be the hope for a better and brighter future of any society.

The truth is that our Nigerian youths should realize that they can actually redefine their future and make it in life without resorting to any illegitimate means of doing so. They can decide not to allow the delimiting factors, harsh economic environment, undisciplined/unprincipled artists, and non-performing politicians in the country, to stop them from being successful in life THE RIGHT WAY, and making their society a better place.

We are aware that, sadly, many of the dreams of our Nigerian youths is to live in Europe and America for greener pastures. But they fail to realize that the grass is not really greener on other side. Like I have repeatedly said in several occasions, no foreigner or foreign country will develop our dear Nigeria for us. That onerous task solely belongs to us, and can best be done by us. It is our responsibility to develop Nigeria and no one else’s. Ask those abroad, many of them will tell that Nigeria, even with its flawed system and leadership failures, is still the best country in the world. There is no place like one’s home country. Nigeria is our home country, and if the right political leaders, as well as followers are in place, Nigeria will only get better. Nigeria is blessed with every good thing, many of which others abroad cannot ‘freely’ do or enjoy. All that we need is the right political leaders to make things better for all and sundry.

Zik Gbemre.

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