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Experts point to deepening social media influence on children’s development as source of concern and have advised parents and teachers to strengthen their roles to inculcate positive values in children.
Parents, teachers are said to be abdicating their roles to social media which experts say poses danger to growing youths.
“There is an abdication of the roles by parents and teachers to positively impress the fertile minds of children and youths from ideas for true values of integrity and greatness, to ideas on the Social Media and the streets gain, Akintola Benson, commissioner, Lagos State Ministry of Establishments, Training and Pensions said.
According to him, this has made our societies become less cohesive, honourable and less assured of a glorious future.
He made this known while speaking at the Annual Leadership Lecture with theme, “Becoming an Uncompromising Leader of Positive Impact of Values and Integrity” at Dansol High School in Lagos.
He said that since nature abhors a vacuum, competing and less noble ideas peddled on the Social Media and the streets gain now have firm roots in the minds of children and youths.
Akintola stressed that their minds are impressionable such that parents, teachers and the society at large have a unique and valuable opportunity to play.
He expressed delight at the efforts of Dansol High School to go the extra mile in moulding today’s youths into the leaders of tomorrow with values and integrity.
He said: “This year’s theme bears a very relevant message for the current Nigerian society.
We seem to be bereft of leaders to whom our youths can look up to.
“The best of our leaders is tainted with deeds and failings that do not encourage our youths to appreciate the place of values and integrity in an individual’s character and in the society as a whole. I urge our youths to choose the path of integrity as they pursue their life’s journey.”
Akintola highlighted seven valuable life lessons that will enable children and youths embark on the road to becoming uncompromising leaders of positive impact.
He asks them never to forget that all of life is a test, they should never underestimate the value of experience and the need to listen to wise counsel; do the hard work; be consistent; don’t compare themselves with others; and be truthful.
Indeed, if our youths will today resolve to inculcate the noble values of integrity and consistent hard work, they will become impactful leaders of your generation, he noted.
STEPHEN ONYEKWELU
