As the controversy about the circumstances surrounding the demise of Ilerioluwa Oladimeji Aloba (Mohbad) rages on in the midst of the ongoing state-backed investigation of the cause of death, a senior member of the Ikeja Branch of the Nigerian Bar Association, Mr Adeniyi Quadri has called on critical stakeholders of the society to address the growing moral crisis that seems to have now enveloped our society.
In a WhatsApp post he published on the NBA Ikeja WhatsApp platform on the evening of Sunday 24th September, 2024, Mr. Quadri is of the opinion that if deliberate efforts are not made to reverse the trend, the impact would be severe on the nation’s public health and, in turn, the productivity of the nation.
He said:
Distinguished Colleagues, I am worried by the level of moral decadence in the society. I am genuinely afraid of the consequences on our society.
The unfortunate death of the Hip-Hop artiste Ilerioluwa Oladimeji Aloba (a.k.a Mohbad) and the unfolding story has only accentuated the moral crisis that peeked in our society about a decade and half ago.
There is a lot to be worried about. The moral fabric of our society appears to be in tatters, and the critical stakeholders are either ignorant and/or unmindful of the imminent consequences or are queerly unperturbed.
The greatest asset any nation will thrive in is its Human Resources, particularly the QUALITY of its young and active population. The question to ask is, “What is the quality of the young demographic in Nigeria today?” The answer is obvious. A demographic that glorifies cultism, hedonism and gangsterism as the fad. A demographic that is largely high on both organic and synthetic drugs (Molly, loud, skushi, ice, colorado, skunk, rohypnol, etc.) and with little or zero regard for industry and good character is looming cannon fodder.
There is no gainsaying that in the next few years the result of these malaises will be evident in our public health (kidney failure and mental breakdowns) and the consequential dip in our already dwindling GDP. The high use of drugs has been linked directly to the deteriorating reproductive health among the young people.
We are living witnesses to the effect of cultism in the deteriorating security situation all across the nation. The trending Sagamu cult clash comes to bear.
THE PROGNOSIS IS BAD and this is not fear-mongering. A friend muttered to me a few days ago… “Quadri, wahala dey”. And indeed I agree “Wahala de o”.
Even though there is a lot to be done by the Government in terms of paradigm shift in the relevant policy, legislative intervention and law enforcement; other critical stakeholders (particularly Parents, the Arts/Entertainment Community and the Clergy) must also key in to deliberately alter the orientation of the misguided members of our younger generation.
Parents have to be vigilant and intentional about parenting. As much as possible, find out what your child is doing. Like it has been stated elsewhere, “Pay attention to your instinct.” “Listen to him/her not judgmentally but rather pay attention to his/her point of pain and not the response.”
Most importantly, we must intervene individually in our spaces in whatever little ways we can. We must be conscious of the fact that we are parenting not only our child but somebody somewhere. If the world must be clean, each person must start by cleaning his/her own doorstep.
THIS IS A CLARION CALL.
God bless NBA
God bless Nigeria.
Adeniyi Quadri, Esq.
