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The Gaming Culture And The Future Of The Nigerian Youth By Atsar Terver
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

There is a culture which is fast evolving in Africa, Nigeria in particular, which is taking its toll on the Nigerian youth. It is what I call the ‘gaming culture’. It is a relatively new phenomenon that promotes a seemingly harmless but dangerous mentality that depends on luck, chance and to some extent, wits for instant fame, wealth and probably some joy in life. This culture is promoted majorly by the big names in the manufacturing industry and lately the majors in the telecommunication industry, in their ever increasing quest to dominate the market through propaganda and what marketers call positioning.

Positioning simply means placing an organisation’s product or trade identity side-by-side with a popular or accepted ideology, concept or icon in order to tap from the goodwill of the icon. For example, Guinness over the years has sought to promote its Gulder brand as a beer for the ‘strong’- a beer that gives ‘power‘ for action(whatever this means).So, in addition to several stunning adverts, in which a heroic figure (Michael Power) performs some obviously impossible feats to the admiration of credulous fans who are in turn lured to go for a Gulder, and in all probability end up in the gutter instead of the expected hall of fame, Guiness for the past three years has been sponsoring a game called the ‘Ultimate Search’. Participants are put in a jungle where they are expected to locate a hidden treasure. The lucky person who finds the treasure becomes an instant ‘millionaire’. Harmless, isn’t it?

Globacom, in what they claim to be an attempt to compensate their faithful customers, have supposedly given away hundreds of new cars to ‘winners’ who participate in the reload-and-win promotions. Customers are encouraged to load as much credit on their phones as possible to increase the ‘chances’ of winning. Needless to say, while the operator rakes in billions of naira through this promotion, at the end of the day some few winners emerge from some curious ‘lucky’ draws. Those who don’t win are encouraged to try again in subsequent promotions and the cycle continues.

These games come in various forms and concepts. It could be in form of beauty a pageant, a lottery, lucky dip, scratch and win (under crown caps) or reality show. All these have one thing in common, that is, they are games, reliant in the main on luck. An exception however needs to be made of reality shows and beauty competitions in which talent also plays a role. Even then their gaming nature cannot be disputed.

In Nigeria, where it appears we have been endowed with the peculiar anointing to excel in the wrong things and everything that has negative impact, this culture has been taken to ridiculous levels lately. All sorts of pageants have been introduced in Nigeria ranging from the normal to the bizarre. From the Miss Nigeria or MBGN, we now have Miss Nollywood and The finest Girl in Nigeria. Almost every industry is craving to have a beauty contest is its name. Miss Banking, Miss Insurance, Miss Hospitality, Miss Radio& Television . And very soon we may be having our girls lured to come out and contest for weird pageants like, the ugliest girl in Nigeria, the dumbest girl in Nigerian or The fattest girl in Nigeria.

In the area of reality shows too, we have not fared badly. Since 2003 when Bayo Okoh returned from Big Brother Africa in South Africa without the crown, we have had Big Brother Nigeria, Next Movie Star, Street to Star, Amstel Malta Box Office and it’s still counting.

But what is wrong with all these seemingly harmless games? To the ‘lucky’ few who happen to ‘win’ in these competitions, there could hardly be anything better or worth doing. What with the sudden fame and wealth? Who does not want to be a star?

Perhaps the well known evil of beauty contests and reality shows especially the Big –Brother-Model, is the promotion of nudity with attendant negative impact on moral sanity. It was this perception that caused the riots in the North in protest against the plan to host the 2002 edition of the miss World competition in Kaduna in November of that year. Interestingly Christians were targeted in this violence as if beauty contests are a Christian religious rite. But the reason is not farfetched. If the contest were planned for Lagos, there would have been approbation from the people of the south, who are predominantly Christian instead of protest. This is a silent query on our loose Christian values.

But that was just a diversion; I was trying to highlight the subtle dangers innate in the booming gaming culture. Our younger generation is gradually brainwashed with a different value system: A value system that dovetails with the fast-food-syndrome. We want fast fame, fast money, fast success, fast certificates, everything fast and just at the scratch of a card. Success in life is taking a different meaning. You don’t really need to excel in anything to become a star; one only needs to win a game. Success is now a gamble!

Unfortunately instant stars also vanish instantly and that is why one could scarcely count a beauty queen that has created any impact on national development beyond the one-year pet projects during their reign, which also vanish at the end of their tenure. No wonder the Bible says in Proverbs 31:30 ...beauty is vain. Come to think of it, the women who are creating positive impact on our national life are not the beauty queens. The Ngozi Okonji-Iwuelas, the Dora, Akunyilis, the Farida Waziris, are all the product of diligent scholarship and many years of hard work which the gaming culture tends to downplay.

Nigeria has indeed produced real stars in various fields of human endeavour but none emerged through gambling. Great men like, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, Chike-Obi, Sunny Okosun, Ernest Okonkwo, Bishop Idahosa, all of blessed memory, did not emerge through winning a lottery or a reality show. If Chief MKO Abiola was alive, he could have born me witness that real wealth (and of course fame) is created by great hard work and vision rather than winning a game that transforms one into an instant millionaire.

Cases of examination malpractice, 419, drug addiction and smuggling, prostitution on our campuses (they call it called RUNS for style) and even armed robbery among our youth could be traced to this gaming culture. Our students want to pass examinations instantly without effort; so they cheat. The young school leaver, who graduates through cheating must also make fast money through 419 or do drugs and armed robbery because indeed he has nothing to offer society. The female students also want instant cash so they go for RUNS.

Our youth must be reoriented to understand that life is not just a big gamble. The era of hard work and academic excellence should not be antiquated. Their models and mentors must be chosen wisely. For example, a wise girl should rather make Professor (emeritus?) Grace Alele-Williams her mentor, than Agbani Darego because being a beauty queen is not a career. Instead of struggling to win every lottery or enter reality shows, the wise youth should understudy the lifestyles of successful businessmen like Aliko Dangote, Mike Aadenuga, Bamanga Tukur and make one of them his models. Society must also strive to recognise and reward diligence over and above instantaneous and effortless prosperity, which is the root of corruption.

Unfortunately today an average schoolboy or girl is more likely to respond eagerly to an invitation to participate in a reality show than a writing or science competition! If this trend is not halted, then the future of our youth is in serious jeopardy.

Those who hunt instant fame and wealth through the gaming culture would only wake up belatedly to realise that, it’s a mirage. Promoters of these shows do it for what they could gain from the participants and fans and not vice-versa, even though they paint the picture of the former. It is part of the whole game. The more you look the less you see.

October 26, 2008 | 11:57 AM Comments  0 comments

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ISN’T IT SURPRISING?
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Is it not surprising that ten naira seems a large amount of when you give for offering, but a small amount when someone wants to eat biscuit?

Is it not surprising when you are praying, you cannot find a word to say, but when you want to talk to a friend you have many words to say?
Is it not surprising that we believe everything that newspaper said but we question the word of God in the bible?

Is it not surprising how two hours seem so long when you are praying, and how short it is when you are watching a movie?

Is it not surprising that a student fears his fellow student than his parents?

Is it not surprising that someone can use five thousand naira (N5000) to buy shoes or cloth but to buy Bible at the rate of Eight Hundred naira (N800) you find it difficult?

Is it not surprising that everybody wants to go to heaven but struggling for it is a problem?
It is boring and difficult to read one page of the scripture, but how sweet it is to read 100 pages of a novel.

Isn’t it advisable to switch off handset when in church but many find this difficult?