By ‘Sola Fagorusi
There is nothing wrong with a student who loves to have his ears plugged whilst enjoying the latest hit music on his phone. It only becomes a concern if that is all he listens to a great deal of the time when he equally had the option of recording lectures and other essentials that would make him a round student. It’s fine if a student knows all Nollywood actors and can readily reel off the list of The Oscars Award nominees and winners since 1929. It becomes balanced when the same student can mention the names of presenters and anchors on international news channels without breaking a sweat and can analyse socio-political issues in the country while possibly name-dropping columnists of a number of national dailies in the country. A situation where an undergraduate draws a blank when asked to mention the names of five African presidents puts us all at future risk!
My piece last week on ‘Nigerian Students and the 2015 elections’ struck a number of cords given some of the emails and messages I received. The trepidations were partly clothed and unpretentious all at once. A number of Nigerians were rightly concerned about the hands in which the country’s fortunes will rest in the coming decades. Raymond, E.O wrote to say ‘I want to completely agree with you on all the issues you have raised, undoubtedly, most youths in this country now reek with a bad sense of apathy and are constantly growing indifferent to issues of national concern.’ Another reader, Ademola Adesola reasoned that ‘… You are right to observe that quite often their phones are put to unprofitable uses, that they strangely strive after things of no enduring values, and the stale icing on the poisonous cake of their mental barrenness – they prefer to zealously listen to shallow songs, diligently see movies with weak plots, loudly exchange inelegantly expressed views on ephemeral things in vogue, and wastefully immerse themselves in worldly religious shindigs rather than do anything reasonably close to what the chaps in Hong Kong are doing for their good and that of the country… The way to begin is for these young people to take deeper interest in things of value. They must value reading and give no wide berth to knowledge. These and their youth, energy, etc., can do a world of good for the country. I recommend your column for the willing mind.’
Bill Bamigboye’s message pulled out other reasons for today’s situation. According to him, “… the age of ideological warfare wherein youths enlisted is over. Einstein, Charles Darwin, Adam Smith, Karl Max, for whatever they were worth ideologically, have now been relegated to the darkest archives of civilization. In their place, we now have Ronaldos, Kardashians, 50 cents, Halle Berry, and the Nollywood wannabes. You might remember Kenneth Kaunda: ‘Zambia Shall Be Free.’ Kaunda, memorably remarked thus: Whom do we hope to lead to our promise land? A nation half drunk, half corrupt, half thinking and possessing so many halves of what makes life…is it possible?” Atoloye Idowu merely sighed, “how I wish the desired audience read this”. His was couched in fear that the piece may not even find place with student groups.
It must be said that despite the gloom, there are a number of Nigerian students whose world view and grasp of local issues will make the cockles of the heart warm. The concern remains the ratio when compared to the mammoth number of students in the country. Nigerian students in their collective mass owe this country a lot and they have the capacity to return the nation’s lost glory. There are 128 Universities in the country; 81 polytechnics, 31 monotechnics, 50 colleges of health technology, 37 colleges of education and 36 colleges of agriculture. Going by the number of candidates who wrote the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, the entrance examination organised by the Joint Admission Matriculation Board, there are a little over one million students annually hoping to gain entry to various tertiary institutions. There lies a critical mass!
For the 2011 election, Professor Attahiru Jega, the man on whose table the buck stops at INEC requested for 55.6 billion naira to execute the elections. The electoral umpire has recently justified the need to spend 93 billion naira for the 2015 elections. What we have today in form of leadership at various levels in the country is in part a product of the grand expenses of 2011. I am not sure there is any Nigerian alive today that is not desirous of a better country.
Nigerians of the older generation need to step in and do something fast using the channels this generation of student love most – the new media. Someone needs to start history lessons online and share with students. Someone needs to begin to teach civic education in attractive forms online and make sharing easy and interactive for students. Lecturers in various tertiary instution also need to step in using the conventional teaching route and find ways to compel their students to engage with the polity. I recall one of my former lecturers who told us how his Ph.D supervisor would never read each stage of his thesis work unless he came to him with a recently published article in a national daily. It’s easier to even demand such of students now in the age of blogs and online news platform.
Someone needs to make the next generation interested in (auto)biographies and memoirs. The older generation of musician may also need to come up with creative means to use music to kick-start this social re-engineering need. Concerned money bags in the country may also want to use the allure of reality shows on cable television to change the status quo by sponsoring a show that puts a demand on the intellect and makes cerebral issues compelling.
The glorious era when students were thoroughly celebrated may be over; it can still return if we work hard at it. And of course, the method and approach will defer. In every student’s pocket lies a smart phone that is often used; the task is how to make that smartphone an accepted tool for the kind of knowledge that can lift society. I’ll love to see twitter fights between students. Not one on whether Kim Kardashian uses a body magic or not but one about policies and other issues that collectively affects us as Nigerians. This much, Nigerian students owe this country even though the country may have given them little to hope for.
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‘Sola Fagorusi
Sola Fagorusi is a youth development advocate, freelance writer, accomplished debater cum coach. The Obafemi Awolowo University graduate has about 10 years experience in social entrepreneurship which straddles leadership, good governance cum anti-corruption and adolescent reproductive health. The Leap Africa alumnus is also a trained peer educator, a DESPLAY alumnus and co-facilitator. For 2 years now, he has been a technical consultant and lead judge on the Intra-Faith Peace Youth TV Debate Project facilitated by Youngstars Foundation and the British High Commission. To read his full profile, click here.
