By definition, Social Injustice is a situation when moral unfairness/inequity and perhaps illegal methods, customs, traditions and systems are being practiced in a society.
Nigeria have many unfair practices, most of which are not addressed on a public forum. They range from heinous crimes such as murder/assassinations, ritual killings, kidnapping, rape, domestic violence, drug trafficking, illegal baby factories and corruption to the much lesser ones that individuals commit on a daily basis. It is disheartening and breaks my spirit. I can joke around on so many issues and those that know me know that I always see the bright side to every situation. I look at Nigerians walking on the street and I smile because most of us are a group of hardworking people just trying to survive. On other days I cry for Nigeria as the things I see, is not normal yet it is accepted or dare I say ignored.
Some issues I would love to be addressed.
1. BABIES HAVING BABIES
I was at the hospital the other day and I saw a young girl in her school uniform drinking water. The lady with her then instructed her to drink more water as she will need a full bladder for her pregnancy scan. What?!!!!!????!!!! This girl looked no more than 12. My heart wept. What is a girl that young doing having a baby. In the world we live in. This as a school girl. About 10 minutes later, another lady walked in to the hospital with her baby and a younger girl (that looked like her house girl) and the girl she brought in came in too for a pregnancy test and scan. Upon seeing the results, the lady immediately jumped and told the girl 'I hope you are happy now you and my husband have gotten what you want'. Who are these children and where are their parents? How did that baby end up in such a precarious situation. Someone needs to be jailed! The paedophile of a man should be arraigned and the law should take its course. Here I feel the parents of the children are to blame. I have always maintained that children are exactly that. Children. They need to be protected. They need to be taken care of. You can't have them and ship them off to the next person that will supposedly look after them. What if that child is being sexually, emotionally, physically and mentally abused? How can a girl still in her secondary school uniform be pregnant. Under whose watch? I'm sorry but someone needs to be held accountable and that child needs to be protected from her predators.
2. YOUNG CHILDREN WORKING
When I see children working on the streets, whether its selling products or even in the capacity as a house-help, I think its injustice at its peak. We live in such a dysfunctional society and it baffles me how as a society, we have stripped the rights off young children and their right to have a decent childhood. Some will argue about children needing to work so as to support the parents. Excuse me, but what are the parents doing having 20 children that they cannot feed. If you cannot feed yourself 3 square meals in a day, what are you doing opening your legs and having more children. This might sound rich coming from me because I love children but we are in the 21st century. Why have a child and send them out to work at the age of 5 when they should be at school. You think having so many children means that you have enough children to buy you a mansion when you are old? Why can't you buy yourself a mansion and will it to your children like your counterparts are doing in other parts of the world. It really annoys me when people think the world starts and ends with Nigeria. How about the children who you put on the streets at such a young age, don't get an education and then grow up to use your own head for rituals because they are sick of living a poor life, or they end up as armed robbers, kidnappers and terrorists on the streets. Children get tired of the hard knock life and out of frustration, they end up making even more stupid decisions.
3. MOTHERS AND BABIES BEGGING ON THE STREET
On my way back from the hospital, I saw about three mothers holding their identical twin babies sitting on the sidewalk. That is child abuse. I kept wondering why these women cannot leave these babies at home to go on the streets and hustle. That is why I have an enormous amount of respect for market women. With the little they have, they can turn nothing into something. They respect themselves to know that despite the number of children they chose to have, they will work hard for their keep. I find it so inspiring. How can a mum, put her children out on the street, in the blazing sun, and beg people for bread. I can't recount the number of times I have personally emptied my wallet for people on the street. When I see women doing that, who do I blame? Who do we point fingers at? The mum? Society? The government? Lets say all three. The parent for having no care and concern in the world that putting your baby's life at risk in the middle of the road to beg for alms is callous and inhumane. The society, for turning a blind eye and not getting these individuals off the streets. Yet, millions of citizens pass these people on a daily basis. Why hasn't anyone alerted any agency to assist the mums get off the streets and back on their feet. Are you telling me that even pastors who are buying private jets up and down do not pass them constantly? Isn't it an irony that if and when those children grow to maybe become someone in life despite their dysfunctional upbringing, you will then preach about how that same individual needs to keep sowing seeds into your ministry? The government? Well of course. The Nigerian system as a whole. How is it possible that trillions of Naira are being budgeted for different projects around the country yet most parts of Nigeria still looks like a pigs den? These people in government know how bad the country is so they send their children to abroad to get a better education and for a better life in general. Again, like our well meaning men and women of God, how many people in the government pass these children on a daily or monthly basis. Just 100yards down the road was LASTMA police officers. Why are these officers paid to direct traffic rather than give these streets traffic lights (common sense) and deploy officers to do other well meaning jobs in their state. I am not saying, chase them off the streets so they can't beg for food. No. How about put them into rehabilitation homes to get them better equipped for the society and for their children.
That leads me to the final part of this post.
THE SOLUTION
I don't claim to know all the answers, but when something is wrong, it is wrong and needs to be called out. Especially when children are involved. From my points above, children have been involved in all three cases. This is what I saw in one day. This is any given day for Nigerians. Nigerians see this on a daily basis, and yet do nothing.
I'm no expert but here are my simple suggestions to whoever it may concern.
I think the first solution that will go a long way for the whole society is education. Young adults need to be educated on family planning and sex education. Please note that I said young adults, not children. A child has no business with this information because they should be busy doing what other children do.
Condoms! Nigerians need to use condoms and you can say the ones that are having these babies simply cannot afford to buy condoms. How about give it to them for free. Set up an initiative to educate communities, small and large on the importance of protecting yourself. From sexually transmitted diseases, HIV and pregnancy. Children are blessings from God but I am sure if these women were educated and were given a choice, they will chose when and how they will have their children. Rural enlightenment
Education plays an integral role to all the above. Parents who come from poor backgrounds who cannot afford to look after their children should not be handed your N100 a day. That will get them no where. They could be taught a trade or a skill. There should be programs directed solely to helping them get off the streets with their newborn babies and doing something that will benefit both them and their children. This will prevent a lot of women giving out their children to work. It is a vicious cycle but as a society we need to pull together and start from somewhere.
Other ways to help these individuals is helping them with their housing. Putting these individuals in free accommodation (yes I said free) Or at least affordable. But saying affordable is subjective as what is affordable to one family may not be to others. How much do they make in a month to pay as their monthly rent. Hence I said Free. With all the money being floated around and stolen and placed in foreign accounts around the world, it could be put nicely into assisting the plight of these women and permanently turning their lives around for the better.
ps, forgive any typos. Its 2am. I will edit tomorrow
xoxo
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