Age is a very serious matter in
Nigeria. People act like as you get older, the gods just appear to you on
birthdays and impart life's wisdom on you that younger people are not privy to.
This wisdom now gives you the right to act like a god over people and say
things you would not want said to you; due to age, that chilled, laid back work
place that is gaining traction in the Western world cannot work in Nigeria.
When you were seriously beaten for not calling someone who your older sister was
friends with 'SIS' because she was older than you, or 'BROS' all because of
age, you now want to walk down the corridor of the office and refer to your senior
or Jero or Esther, so they will stop you and explain to you how many meetings
they have had with the gods therefore you have no right to be referring to them on first name basis or when a young
person tries to tell one of your subordinate staff members who happens to be
much older than you off and they go out and grumble how they have your type at
home.
We have all been there in one
form or the other. In this country, young people are mostly treated as if there
is nothing they have to offer whether we like it or not. The people who we are
calling sir and Ma today at our ages were required to bring in much more than
they ask of the younger generation today and they worked in a system that
supported and nurtured them to be where they are today. How do you want to
plant corn and expect to harvest wheat?
For our generation, most of use
that grew up in Middle class Nigeria (as in your parents could afford three square
meals and your school fees) lead very sheltered lives. Nothing was asked of us
except to pass our exams and try and make it through school without getting pregnant
or joining cult. We were sent to market or asked to spend our pocket money
wisely when aunty or uncle dashed us something. We were a very sheltered
generation and we had the perception that we were owed, not only by our parents but also by our
communities.
We believed we were owed certain things and every time we did not
get what we thought we were owed we became more and more selfish, thinking
about how to manipulate our parents and our society to give us our due. Now our
parents are reaping the fruits of all their hard work considering that their
children could have gone one way or another.
I was talking to someone that
said Nigerians do not have the drive to nurture things, we all want to make
money fast, we all want accelerated progress based on no effort, and I was
thinking that how much of that is as a fault of our predecessors. We grew up in
a Nigeria where the rich had to show that they were rich, all the money came
from government, they were the elite, driving cars we saw in movies and
dragging around a litany of police escorts so that their wives can go to market
and buy food stuff. That was the sign of your arrival. The young people were
watching and we all wanted to be like that, so we took it a step up and
sacrificed house rent for designer clothes bags and cars, it even became more
important for us to be perceived as rich as it was for us to actually be rich.
You do not create a system that rewards
selfishness and corruption and expect that people will come to you straight
forward and upright. Only the sharp were moving forward so that's how we have
programmed ourselves to be. People that damaged a system now want to blame a generation
coming after for the decay in a system they laid and then they use this to explain
to us how our generation is lost and need the help of the older generation to succeed.
A system that you destroyed. how exactly do you fix something you have broken
when you are still using the same practices and employing the same mentality?
I believe that there is a wisdom
that comes with getting older and being open to learning new things. The
problem comes when you consider yourself the smarter one in a room just because
every other person is younger than you are. It's not fair and it doesn't
improve you, but that's the mentality of most of the older generation, they
forget that the more you are open to learning new things the more accepting and
wiser you are. while young people are generally ignorant, arrogant without
cause and lack simple courtesy, they are demanding more inclusion, more thought
to our cause. No more telling young people to wait and pay their dues, what
dues? Young people are everyday breaking those ceilings that have been created
by age in this country despite the general lack of support and disillusion .
Age does not give you the key to life, no one person has the solution to
problems.
Most young people are ready to
learn, understand hard work and are ready to put in the hard work, Maybe we
should start giving an ear to the dreams of much younger children, don't wait
till they leave secondary school and don't only concentrate on private school
kids. Let's not ignore their dreams like they don't matter, imagine if you had
had the support for your dream, would your life be fuller? Will you be happier?
For our system to work, older
people have to understand that because things are not done your way does not
mean they can't be done and younger people need to understand that old age does
come with its own advantages. But when we don't have a system where older
people can retire in peace, they will keep making it harder and harder for the
younger ones to come up because they believe we haven't paid our dues yet or
have more time ahead.
On the flip side, the older
generation can say the things they do because some young people have no drive.
They really do expect for things to be handed to them and when they are not
they don't have the bone to push back. Maybe it's a personality thing or maybe
it is because some of us know that the system doesn't favour just anybody.
People have used just their hard work and prayers and are succeeding everyday
in this country. It may be harder here than in most other places but I really
believe that if you can survive thrive and succeed in Nigeria you can make it
anywhere (don't mind New York because if we had half the things they had we
will be unstoppable too)
We are jaded and cynical and yes
we have our faults and flaws but maybe if doors were opened to all ages and
classes of people just maybe that's when this whole situation will begin to
turn around for us.
We have only one Nigeria.
XO
Similar Posts On kimi-shy.blogspot.com : It's Not my Fault i am Nigerian
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