Every time I read the news, I’m saddened by how far we have drifted from our roots, at how much we have neglected the values that made us wholesomely African. We have degenerated from a people who considered children precious and a collective responsibility to monsters that prey on the defenseless. No longer are we a people who lived out the proverb of the Igbo, nwam kakwam which is both a wish and a prayer that a child’s achievement in wealth and social standing surpasses those of his parents. Instead, we have become a people who pay lip service to governance, character formation, development and leadership. We stifle justice and like the people with misplaced priorities that we have become, we chase rats when our houses are burning.
But our biggest tragedy as a nation is this epidemic of violence against children. The news is filled with mind-numbing stories of cruelty meted out on youngsters. With each passing minute, the scope of violence unleashed against children widens. We’ve graduated from cradle robbery to mutilating and castrating babies. Toddlers like Hope are labelled witches. Through no fault of theirs, they become victims of superstitions that condemn them to death even before they have a chance to live. It’s heartbreaking that children who should be guided gently and surely in the right direction are chained and starved for behavioral problems. Our society is filled with predators who are bent on destroying the most important part of our heritage. It’s upsetting that the hands that rock the cradle are now bent on destroying it. But what is even more painful is the murder of our children’s innocence when we force them to bear the brunt of our frustration with the world.
Nigeria passed the Child’s Right Act into law in 2003 and is signatory to several international conventions and agreements on the rights of children. Yet, our lawmakers still contract child marriages. Pedophiles who are considered pariahs in most nations walk our streets freely. Little wonder, since they have an army of lawyers volunteering to defend their perversion. Institutional frameworks that cater for the well-being of children are weak. It’s time our government lived up their responsibilities to children. They must understand that every time a child is violated, abused or made to go through a traumatic experience, his or her physical, psychological and social development is altered irredeemably and we, as a nation are denied the opportunity of harnessing that child’s full potential.
Finally, the destiny of this great country rests on the shoulders of our children. A nation that is silent in the face of child molestation and abuse is a nation that’s destined for extinction. Our strides as a nation can best be measured by how well we protect the rights of the fragile and vulnerable part of our human resources.