The Director-General, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lanre Issa-Onilu, has attributed the decline in societal values of children to lack of good parenting from various homes in the country.
The NOA boss who said this during his advocacy tour and media engagement in Osun State, remarked that many parents brought up their children in the way of foreigners from their early ages, while pointing out the neglect of our rich cultural values.
According to him, poor parenting has caused a lot of havoc on Nigerian children and advised parents to raise their children “in the ways of our cultures in various homes to expose them to the culture, traditions and ways of life of the Nigerians.”
He remarked that youths were abandoned to their own fate, hence, they pick whatever appears to them through technology as acceptable values while government and parents jettisoned their roles.
“Some of us, while growing up, got civic education where we learn basic ethical issues where we were inculcated with leadership ideals. No more Boys Scouts and no more Girls Brigade.
“You create idleness in the lives of children. They spent several hours at home and in school. They watch cartoons. Cartoons teach them foreign values and drop Nigeria values. You are raising foreigners and you think you are raising Nigerians. As they grow up, the vocabulary, the mentality is western and you say they prefer nudity than covering their body.
“The lifestyle of America is what they use for their cartoons. There are cartoons showing a man and a woman marrying, a woman and a woman marrying. Your children are watching it and they think it is normal.
“Now, this administration is launching Character Charter soon that will compulsory subjects from Primary, Secondary to University level to prepare our youths on what is expected of them as members of the society.
“It will inculcate morality and generally acceptable societal values in them from childhood to adulthood and guide them properly on Nigerian values and public conduct”, he added.
The Director-General charged all and sundry to cooperate with the agency in its bid to restore societal values.
