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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Conflict & Security

‘N60k salary, four wives, 17 kids,’ Wike’s aide says irresponsible parenting fueling Northern insecurity

From The Punch · (1d ago) English Critical tone

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • A Nigerian official has linked insecurity in Northern Nigeria to irresponsible parenting, specifically citing low-income earners marrying multiple wives and fathering numerous children they cannot support.
  • The official argued that unregulated polygamy and child abandonment contribute to a growing population of neglected children who may become future threats.
  • He questioned the government's role in addressing the issue, particularly in cases where individuals with low incomes have large families, suggesting that personal responsibility is a key factor.

Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication and Social Media to the FCT Minister, has ignited a significant debate regarding the root causes of insecurity in Northern Nigeria. Olayinka directly attributes the escalating security challenges to what he terms "irresponsible parenting," focusing on the practice of low-income earners engaging in polygamy and fathering a large number of children they are ill-equipped to provide for.

This is one problem the North must begin to solve now. There is no reason a man who cannot properly take care of one wife and two children should marry three wives and produce fifteen or seventeen children.

— Lere OlayinkaCommenting on the link between family size and insecurity.

Olayinka's argument posits that the combination of unregulated polygamy and subsequent child abandonment creates a breeding ground for future insecurity. He draws a stark connection between the sight of impoverished children begging on the streets and the potential for these neglected youths to become involved in criminal activities, including terrorism and banditry. His rhetorical questions about the origins and future of these children underscore a deep concern about a looming societal catastrophe.

Many of today’s terrorists and bandits were once innocent children roaming the streets, hungry, uneducated, and forgotten.

— Lere OlayinkaHighlighting the potential future consequences of child neglect.

The official further challenges the tendency to solely blame the government for the nation's problems. He uses the hypothetical example of a "gate-man earning N60k per month, but has four wives and 17 children" to illustrate a scenario where individual choices, rather than government failure, are the primary drivers of hardship and potential social instability. This perspective emphasizes personal responsibility in family planning and resource management.

Each time I see them on major roads in Abuja carrying a plastic bowl, my questions are always How did they get here? Who are their parents? What will these unaccounted children become in future?

— Lere OlayinkaExpressing concern over the plight of street children.

This viewpoint echoes previous concerns raised by figures like Cardinal John Onaiyekan, who had previously linked the worsening insecurity in Northern Nigeria to the Almajiri system and parental abandonment. Olayinka's intervention adds a contemporary voice to this ongoing discussion, highlighting the complex interplay of socio-economic factors, cultural practices, and governance in addressing the persistent security issues plaguing the region.

But what can the government do in the case of a gate-man earning say N60k per month, but has four wives and 17 children?

— Lere OlayinkaQuestioning the extent of government responsibility in cases of large families with low income.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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