Misconduct of the Justice of Conduct and Moral Fabric -By Tony Osakpamwan Agbons

Social scientists have struggled over the years in their attempt to deliver a precise demographic description of successive global generations. The most widely accepted version shows the following viz: Lost Generation 1883 – 1900, Greatest Generation 1901 – 1927. Silent Generation 1928 – 1945, Baby Boomers 1946 –
1964, Generation X 1965 – 80, Millennials 1981 – 1996, Generation Z 1997 – 2012, and Generation Alpha 2010 – mid 2020s. Each of the generations pride themselves with varied positive attributes while the debate rages on as to the progenitors of the more negative characteristics.

Growing up in Benin City in the day’s yore, those of us belonging to the Generation X saw and felt a measure of a serene environment. There was respect for elders, we slept at night with two eyes closed and sometimes forgetting to lock the doors, merchants left their shops opened for quick errands stores without any fear of goods been stolen, children walked to and from school unaccompanied and parents having no fears of their children being abused or declared missing, houses were without high wired fences or metal barricades, everyone knew everyone in the neighbourhood. We could walk home at night after folk play without fear of kidnappings, and there was mutual regard, albeit feelings for mates and a humane disposition for fellow human beings.

My generation also saw a belief in the theory and practice of one step at a time on the ladder of success. There was respect for dignity of labour. We didn`t see the need for any rush to get rich quick by every means. There was an air of satisfaction and contentment about the life we lived. We also believed in the power of education as a tool for mental renewal and enlightenment. It was education in the full sense of the word. There were options for skills acquisition in various vocational fields like car mechanics, vulcanizers, plumbers, electricians, and other artisans. Sporting and entertainment activities also thrived as we could easily spot talents across the streets

– footballers, boxers, weightlifters, musicians, actors/actresses amongst others. These picturesque scenario and times were not all smooth sailing though, as some negative mix did filter in occasionally. Overall, every strata of the society knew its moral boundaries. There were distinct rules, and norms guiding everyone. There was an innate and cognate understanding of the shared values binding the strings of communal togetherness. What happened to the serenity aptly pictured above? How did the society decay to this level we find ourselves today? Is there hope for the future or is it going to get worse? Are there any panacea to this seemingly unending moral decadence now prevalent in our society? What immediate solutions can be proffered to rejig the moral fabric of our `societyhood`. The avalanche of questions keeps flooding in. It is now a case of `to be or not to be` and delivering a mindset reset via a moralistic barometer and socio-cultural re-engineering. Relationship experts allude to the fact that lifestyle is now at a much faster pace than at any time in the history of mankind. The advent of information communication technology, ICT has changed the game. Living in this age has become a sprint in the mould of the famed Usain Bolt. Things happen just like that with the snap of a finger on a button. It is a generation where `the world is now a global room` and no longer ‘a global village’.

The Nigerian society has not been left out in the dynamics of what is our world today. A lot of cultural and traditional evolution has occurred at a ‘tsunamic’ proportions leaving in its wake, massive destruction of the `steel` holding the societal firmament. This sweeping erosion has created deep gullies much to the chagrin of both the Silent Generation and Baby Boomers. How did we get here? In medicine, the first consideration in the treatment of diseases is to know the cause. This could be bacteria, fungi, virus, or protists. The same applies here. Two core issues have ostensibly led us here. First, is the inability of the older generation to pass the moral torch properly and second, is the overwhelming display of affluence cum penchant for self-aggrandizement and domination of fellow human beings by both the older and current generations. Ours has become a society where the value of a man or woman is directly proportional to the weight of their purse. It is no more based on the currency of character and integrity. The language in town is, “it doesn`t matter how I make it, so far as I blow or hammer”.

The `make it by all means syndrome` (legit or illegit) is a lethal weapon of doom for our societal cohesion. The older generation on their part are not helping matters. They have failed the current generation by their inordinate ambition, consistent misjudgments, and overt misdemeanor of `babylonic` dimensions. They have not shown good examples. They have not been inspiring and there has been no model leadership worthy of emulation from majority of the political, business, and bureaucratic class. The religious and traditional leaders and elite are also complicit and culpable in this malfeasance. The recent `misconduct by the justice of conduct`, Danladi Umar, Chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal is a classic case which leaves a sour taste in the mouth. Danladi Umar, a top echelon of the temple of Justice threw away all decency in his all-out attack on an ordinary security man (in Danladi Umar`s mind) at a shopping plaza in Abuja over a parking space. What an injustice coming from a Justice? In saner climes, instant resignation would have taken place the next day or instanta. Such acts are however alien to us – a nation of
`satanic avatars` of some sorts! The justice of misconduct will surely carry on like nothing happened and the matter swept under the carpet. Not for first time, and certainly it won`t be the last time, that a highly well-placed persons like Justice Danladi Umar will intimidate a fellow citizen and go scot free. Who cares? The poor hapless citizens can go to blazes.

There is no doubt that upcoming generations of Nigerians lack good role models to look up to. I am tempted not to use ‘younger generation’ as ‘His Lordship’, Danladi Umar is of Generation X. He is a young man. The dearth of inspirational figures is alarming, disheartening, and toxic for our societal health and wellbeing. Across the world, Nigerians are ‘holding their own’ in sports, music, arts, science, business, technology, and other spheres of human endeavour. Take a look at a few of our production lines. Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu popularly known as Burna Boy is one of Africa`s biggest music star and winner of the 2021 Grammy Award for Best World Music Album, Anthony Oluwafemi Joshua, Unified World Heavyweight Boxing Champion, Philip Emeagwali, world renowned computer czar and winner of the 1989 Gordon Bell Prize for price-performance in high-performance computing applications, Kamaru Usman, UFC World Welterweight Champion, Chimamanda Adichie, Ngozi- Okonjo Iweala, WTO DG, Israel Adesanya, UFC World Middleweight Champion,

Professor Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Douglas Emeka Okor, Neurosurgeon par excellence. We can go on and on. They have brought so much honour and glory to Nigeria. A common denominator with each of these distinguished sons and daughters of our country is their consistent display of excellence. The challenge before us is replicating these role models across the length and breadth of our landscape. Many of them are outside our shores, hence we need to create the enabling environment in Nigeria for the new generations of the Joshua`s and Chimamanda`s to thrive and excel.

The growth and development of a society is not only measured in monetary terms. There are other moral imperatives and value-based index required for nation building. Let us not be deceived, we can boast about with the volume of crude oil in our shores or the gold in our external reserves, our society cannot move forward in intrinsic, real terms. The fundamental tripods of behaviour – shared values, role models and mentoring have to be in place. These tripods of behaviour are the `moral engine` that can power our nation to egalitarian heights and rectitude.

Time has come for us as a people to isolate those who make it to the top via dubious means. These folks are not spirits. They are flesh and blood, who work and live amongst us. They should be exposed. We must begin to loathe men and women of questionable character and wealth like plague. They are like malignant tumours to the society. The time has come for us to punish wrongdoing, so it serves as deterrents to others. It is also time we begin to speak against evil even if it is from our kit or kin, same tribe, or faith. Time has come for us as a people to begin to celebrate and herald men and women of good stead who have put our nation on the shine. The fragrance of honest, hardworking Nigerians from all walks of life must be harnessed to inspire a new generation so that they regenerate new improved fibers to weave the new tapestry of our moral fabric

Dr. Agbons writes from the United Kingdom.