Societal Decadence: 5 Age-Long Nigerian Family Values That Are Lost Off To Gen-Z

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KOKO
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Cheerful multiethnic family at home sitting on sofa listening to daughter. Happy couple with two girls relaxing at home together. Smiling indian parents talking to their daughter at home in the living room.
The decline in the moral system our society once held so dear has led to a deterioration of what the true Nigerian family values, structure and standards are to such magnitude that the Nigerian society at large has suffered for it.  The country as whole is amiss of its true identity and is more or less described in its vices internationally almost as its identity.
Family Values

Each region of the country is, in one form, described as the region of a certain vice or criminal act/behaviour. For the North, religious bigotry, terrorism, banditry and child marriage. For the South-West, it is cybercrime, fraud and scam haven. South-East is best described as home of drug dealers, drug peddlers, money ritualism and fraud.
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It is portent to understand that the family is the first place of contact for any human alive. The family is a microscopic structure of the society at large and the family values held on to stand at the core of all societies. Family values are all of the ideas of how a person wants to live their family life and they are often passed down from one generation to generations. These ideals and family values most often than not help define behaviour in various situations, help youths make good decisions and solidify the bond of family existence. Nowadays, these values are lost and of course, has had a great effect on the state of the society and nation at large. Here are 5 of those age-long values that are lost of to this generation.

1. Communal Living: The modern Nigerian societies are over-nuclearised with the idea of ‘it is me and my family’, fuelled most times by greed, jealousy, resentment and unhealthy competition. Unlike formerly where family members could live together, the loss of true communal living has now birthed everyone living behind tall fences and no thought of one’s kinsmen and neighbours.Loss Of Family Values to Gen-Z

2. Social Responsibility: Social values and responsibility give the perception that everyone has a quota to give, everyone is responsible for every other person, and everyone considers others in taking and making decisions. Before now, that knowledge used to be that it takes an entire society to raise one child, everybody is responsible for the education of every child.

But is that true of the modern family system? Do the Gen-Z know this? They grew up in a time where if an Uncle smacks a cousin and he/she reports to the parent(s), the latter come(s) blazing in fighting with such an uncle without first asking the reason for which the child is smacked or abjured. This ideal have bred the thoughts of ‘my life my decision’.

As true as these words may be, it should also be noted that in the long run, such decisions will always have a ripple effect to persons around one and to the next generation. True social values include not hurting others with one’s decisions, standing up for those who can’t stand up for themselves, being respectful and courteous in interactions and being truly generous with what you have. These are dead in today’s society, it is now I don’t owe anybody anything.
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3. Family Identity: Ask an American what the country’s national identity is and he would jump on to say freedom, liberty of choices, equality, equal opportunity and a strive for a good quality living. Ask a Nigerian Gen-Z what the Nigerian Identity is, you hear the Naija spirit, a hustler, a survivor.

Yes these things are great traits but should those be the definition of what every average person was put through growing up? The loss of family identity is simply the loss of societal identity. What values were instilled by parents, what are every family and society known for? Great virtues – of honesty, hard work, intelligence, freedom, activism – I mean, not just hustlers trying to make ends meet.

Age-Long Family Values lost

4. Work Values: The Gen-Z to a large extents are lost to the values of working hard, being accountable, making a difference, focusing on detail, delivering quality, being completely honest, keeping promises, being reliable, being positive and many more. Rather, teenagers of 14-16-year-old already go to rituals and are into cybercrime and fraud.

What a height of decadence where kids of age 13 say they want to be a pole dancer because they heard people that do it make a lot of easy dollars. The Gen-Z have watched their older brothers and sisters partake in such acts and vices like Olosho/prostitution, scam, kidnapping and banditry to earn a living, what more is expected of them if not worse.
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5. Money As A Determinant Of Who Is Who: The true value of work, societal structures and contribution has gone up in flames and rather it more of how much is in your bank account that determines who is right and who is wrong. The love for money counts as one of the reasons for the loss of moral values and respect for hard work, honesty and societal responsibility.

#Family Values lost; Cheerful multiethnic family at home sitting on sofa listening to daughter. Happy couple with two girls relaxing at home together. Smiling indian parents talking to their daughter at home in the living room.

Photo Credit: Getty

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