Of youth, leaders of tomorrow and gambling

Youth is the time of life when one is young, and often means the time between childhood and adulthood.

Age of candidacy is the minimum age at which a person can legally qualify to hold certain elected government offices.

In many cases, it also determines the age at which a person may be eligible to stand for an election or be granted ballot access.

So, who is a leader? A leader, according to the Oxford Dictionary, is “the person who leads or commands a group, organization or country, while tomorrow means “the near future.”

Gambling, on the other hand, can be described as “the activity or practice of playing at a game of chance for money or other stakes.”

So, how do we now reconcile all these aforementioned if we say youths are leaders of tomorrow? Yes, we are leaders of tomorrow going by the analysis above, but it is very disheartening to see the youths who ought to be leaders of tomorrow at the gambling centres shouting “Eyah!, only two numbers dropped.” “Oh God! I could have permutated Ajanlekoko’s date of birth for that game!” “Do you know that Bagbetemi’s date of birth was the winning number yesterday?” “I have promised Shade a big birthday party if I can win this game.”

Are you surprised? Yes, that is the norm among gamblers. Do you know what? Most of Nigeria’s historical dates have been used to play bet.

The only period you can feel the brilliance of most youths in Nigeria is when you tell them to bet on certain games, not on governance or public affairs that they are supposed to be at home with.

When you visit most of the gambling centres during the working hours, the number of youths you will see there would baffle you. It has now become a full-time job. The search for quick money is the order of the day among youths.

When you question them about their choices, it is either they tell you: “Whom has government helped?” or they tell you government is to be blamed for their action. Why? It’s because the government has failed to provide job opportunities. But who are the owners of these centres? From where did they get their operation licence? What positive role are these gambling centres playing in national development?

The government will tell you that in order to ensure things are done in a modest and standard way, there is a regulatory commission saddled with the responsibility of check monitoring operators. A regulatory commission to promote gambling, indiscipline, laziness and waywardness?

I think it is the high time our present leaders abolished any regulatory commission that would not encourage or promote good morals among our youths. Our youths need to be taught that there is no better way to success and wealth than hard work, dedication, and determination.

Engaging in gambling activities may fast-track your wealth, but can you tell your children that your wealth is a product of gambling? I strongly believe that most youths will say “No”. So, why engage in activities that can deprive you of taking charge as leaders of tomorrow?

Should we say that our present leaders encourage it so as to continue to be leading us? For how long would they continue to be our leaders? Of course, it’s not going to be forever. Not forever, but it may interest you to know that those they will hand over leadership to are their children whom they have given quality education and good moral; whom they have advised desisting from gambling activities. So, what happens to the common man’s child who can also lead us right if given similar training?

Of course, the common man’s child will have nothing to offer because the time he was supposed to dedicate to the study of government, leadership training and other resourceful activities that could help him/her had been traded away on gambling activities.

Maybe we should ask our present leaders if this menace called gambling was their hobby when they were young. They should also tell us why they hate us so much that the only thing they can offer us is to promote gambling activities with their so-called “regulatory commission”.

Would you now tell a youth who has had an opportunity to be liberated from the shackles and manacles of the oppressors that gambling activities are meant to empower those who indulge in it financially?

My present leaders, when you visit the gambling centre, you will know that posterity will ask you: ‘was that the activities you engaged in during your time which made you become successful leaders?’

Olawoyin wrote through olawoyin4u@gmail.com