Over the recent time Nigeria has found itself amidst issues that generate serious concern, and one of them- perhaps the most depressing and migraine-giving- is the remote position our society has debased education to behind frivolity called entertainment. The face which the mis-positioning shows, if care is not taken, education may end up being a mere channel towards having exposure to western ideas; there wouldn't be that morale-boosting impulse that makes it a standard apparatus of societal relevance. We will just wake up one day and be told that education is an imperialist agenda, and that's all.Education, as they often tell us, is the bedrock of everything- the necessitating factor to be reckoned with along the borderline of epochal cum societal significance. Ironically, education has carried the first baton in the race of societal negligence. What takes the diadem now is entertainment. I have come to discover that large per cent of young men and ladies have put education behind the back-door, dedicating plethora of attention to entertainment, and aspiring to be like music artistes.
Quite unfortunate, the rate at which the native intelligence is diverted to entertainment is alarming. Ask those secondary school boys who Africa's first Nobel Laurel is, the answer will be silence. They look like heads of slaughtered cow at abattoir. Ask them who Philip Emeagwali and the best brains this country has ever produced are, they don't know them. But just ask them who the crooner of Shakiti-Bobo is, you see many hands up. They know P-Square and Wizkid, but never know the year Nigeria witnessed her first coup de’ tat. This anomaly, displeasing enough, cuts across all level of education. That is why a university student's biggest dream is to have money like Jay Z, build enormous mansion and marry a poster queen like Kim Kardashian-West.
In my own town alone, boys within the age limit of 14-15, that have dabbled into music industry, rap specifically, courtesy of expensive inspiration from indigenous rappers like Olamide, are not less than seven. This is what I could count. But when you check the current level of their academic performance it's nothing to write all about. Where is the future, where is the hope?
Recently, Punch newspaper put up a very attention-calling, exciting report about how entertainment has put education behind the smokescreen of societal relevance. The reporter- intrepid, cerebral and versatile- draws our attention to several instances of how academic best students in our various higher institutions are rewarded for their superb performance with ordinary plague and a token amount, probably one hundred or one fifty thousand naira only- a ridiculous price compared to the booty their colleague delving into entertainment industry cart away as prizes.
He cited ample and factual examples but of all, that of Unilag seemed to be a heavy blow to the educational excellence in the country. Not too long at prestigious University of Lagos a female student, for winning the university's inter-faculty debate, was awarded a laptop and one hundred thousand naira, while in the same university another student won the pageantry contest but went home with a luxurious car and wonderful prizes, both monetary and ambassadorial. The question is: is academic excellence even rewardable or given due encouragement toward pulling down the towering challenge posed by complicated level of illiteracy in our society? This is highly disturbing in a society that is not ready to promote native intelligence through education.
The worst part of it is that, on personal view, all these pageantry contests do not bring any meaningful and effective contribution to the national development. Or of what significance are the virgin and dancing contests that receive full support from many NGOs across the nation, other that moral downhill?
Unfortunately, this is what has beclouded the societal consciousness. Imagine how education in Nigeria would have gone the same level with that of developed nations were the supports given to MTN project Fame, Glo sponsored Dance with Peter, varsities' pageantry contest and the likes are channeled toward the country's education. That won't happen, because nobody wants to invest on the rot called education.
This neurosis does not stop there; it has also run into the psych of our higher institutions' awards night generally. For instance during the Final Year Brethren award night organized by my class during my last year in university, out of available award reserves, only one managed to scale through the academic floor- which is the Bookworm Award for the bibliophile of the class. No award for creativity and innovation, the rest went for the best dressed the most handsome, the most fashionable, the richest, and all sorts of award one does not expect from the academic quarter. What an irony!
As a student I have entered many essay contests both national and regional. But over time I have discovered that many of these essays could not continue because they lack sponsors. Those who organize these beautiful contests, after receiving your submission will not even mind getting back to you, because it is not entertainment and there is nothing for them to gain. This shows that there is total lack of commitment, motivation, and even sponsorship.
I once entered for one national competition which I managed to get into the list of top ten. The organizer promised to call us but up till today, the "fortunate ten" never received any response from them let alone giving out the prizes. My brother Malik won the Yimu poetry contest in 2013 after a rigorous exercise of persuading people for online voting. He would be moving from Zik Hall to Independence at University of Ibadan, begging for people's votes. Although he was declared winner of the contest on Yimu site, the money was half paid after several attempts of calling and begging of the organizer who some time went mad at him. A few months later, we discovered that the Yimu website was no more available on the web page, because there was no sponsor. Yimucentral was online literary webzine that could not continue due to this same syndrome.
The Prof. Remi Raji Inaugural Poetry contest organized by Team Reflector, OAU was won by my brother Danladi Paul Sunday. After being declared the winner before the assembly of the students, co-contestants, and dignitaries, he has never got the monetary prize till today, except the joy of being the winner. Whenever he calls them, patience is the only thing they would give him, because they don't want to pay the money "in piece". Where is the encouragement?
Without any scintilla of doubt, a country like Nigeria needs solid educational support to equip its future technocrats, leaders and intellectuals with necessaries, but we have sold that right to entertainment which, alas, has posed a stumbling block against our socio-moral ethics and religious standard. We all read the story of Ahmed, a Sudanese-American teenager whose clock took him viral. This little boy, despite the controversy that trailed his clock, received incredible support from American President, social networks and many respected global personalities. The lesson for us is that America and European giants never misplace the educational priority, despite their investment on entertainment.
Nigeria can only be saved from being a third world nation, provided we all stop chasing shadow. It is high time both government and non-governmental organization rescued education from this murky pool of disgrace and total disadvantage. Vis-a-vis this Global communication needs to be kudosed for the literary prize organized for Nigerians students, and we hope other NGOs will take academic excellence paramount.
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