Sons of the Age; A Curse to Corruption

Division and subtraction are distinctive characteristics of darkness.  Addition and multiplication are the prime qualities of Light. It is not that which goes into a man that corrupts him, but that which comes out of him. Therefore, your produce provides the basis for your evaluation.

Now, what is corruption? Encarta defines corruption as the dishonest exploitation of power for personal gain. It further described it as extreme immorality, depravity, degeneracy, perversion, debasement, dishonest shenanigans, venality, misdemeanor and vice.

My 2011 unabridged definition of corruption reads thus: 

Corruption is the unprofitable exchange of nothing for something. It is the art or act of extracting value from a person or system without returning or depositing something of equivalent or even greater value back into the original source (the system or person). Corruption is a holistic description of unbridled theft, which I consider as one of the ultimate transgressions. To practice corruption is to steal, kill and destroy value.

Let’s bring it home now and do some mathematics. Corruption = Unproductivity! 

I guess you’re asking how. 

How about this: Corruption = Apathy = Laziness = Entitlement Mentality  = Waste = Unproductivity.

I employed the principle of equivalence and reflexivity here. Indeed, all these words are approximate synonyms. In summary, if you conduct forensic analysis, you would discover that they are all members of the same household.

Now what is unproductivity? To be unproductive is to discard value and waste capital. It means you have little or nothing to show for the resources entrusted into your hands. To put it more accurately, unproductivity means your output is less than the input. For example, If $500 was entrusted into your hands, and we return after an agreed period to find $490 in your hands, you have compromised value. That my friend, is unproductivity and by implication, corruption.

PS: Please note that we have employed money as a store or representation of value in this example. 

If a parent invests $10,000 in a child’s education and the child graduates with a great academic performance and a life transforming social experience, the child has proven to be profitable investment because the competencies acquired and the qualifications obtained are exceedingly worth more than $10,000. In actuality, they cannot be bought and are hence, priceless. A child that chooses to do otherwise brings great pain and has abused the confidence entrusted in him. Such child is no good unless he makes a 180 degree turn in good time and hastens to redeem lost time.

At this point, I would like to state categorically that corruption (unproductivity) has viral and cancerous tendencies. It eats up everything in its path. It constantly seeks to expand its reach by contaminating everything around it. It is never satisfied. It always seeks to conquer new territory. It loves to network and open “service centers“ around the globe. Corruption is like an entrepreneur. It quickly evolves and swiftly replicates itself because by operating this way, it becomes entrenched and deep seated making it near impossible to be dislodged by any opposing force.

After critically examining the nature of corruption as we have done in the previous paragraphs, we do understand there is only way to stop it. Curse it and kill it dead all the way it to its root! Corruption is not a disease that can be managed. You either kill it or leave it to live and flourish. There is no choice here. It is one-way traffic. If you allow it to lead you, it takes you into a cul-de-sac.  If you manage to get in front of it, you either kill it or it converts and dumps you in its trunk.

In order to effectively wage war against and defeat this cancer, you need two things going for you. God and Men! Let’s look at the biblical responses to corruption and unproductivity. 

In Gen38:8-10, Onan (one of Judah’s sons) wasted his seed in an attempt to stop his late brother from having descendants. God did not beg or appeal to him, rather He killed him dead. 

In the parable about the Kingdom and Talents (Matt 25:14-15), The Master gave one of the three servants one talent with which to trade and invest. He yielded zero profit and returned one talent to his Master. Basic economics tells us that 100 naira today is not equivalent to 100 naira tomorrow. A natural law of depreciation (they call it inflation) takes its toll. God called this a wicked thing and immediately pronounced the ultimate judgment against this unproductive servant.

In our third and final example, Jesus (God Incarnate) encountered a Fig Tree (Mk 11:20-24) that had leaves but no fruit. Even though this tree was out of season, it ought to have bore fruit because the natural order of growth for fig trees in the Palestine area is for fruit to come out first before leaves. This fig tree had an appearance of increase but a closer look at it revealed it was an epitome of unproductivity. This fig tree challenged and rebelled against its owner and creator.

How do we know this? Immediately after the cursed fig tree died and withered down to its root, Jesus declared “whosever shall say to this mountain…and believes…..shall have whatsoever he says”. 

Jesus compared the fig tree to an opposing mountain standing in his way. That is the the nature of corruption. It stands in your way and attempts to limit and destroy you. Jesus had given the fig tree all that it needed to produce but it brought forth nothing! Jesus cursed it immediately and it withered.

We have seen that unproductivity and corruption ought to be judged at the speed of light. Where ever laziness, unproductivity, corruption, lukewarmness,  averageness, incompetence and indifference is detected, it ought to be swiftly exterminated.

He that has little, even that which he has shall be taken away. To do nothing with something, to ignore an opportunity to create abundance, to look down rather than look up, is to challenge God. We have a duty to eliminate waste and unproductivity where ever we see it. 

Our mantra should be zero waste. 

Our motto should be CIP (Continuous Improvement in Performance).

Corruption and unproductivity is the antithesis of the first commandment and the ultimate inhibitor and antagonist to reproduction and multiplication.

Division and subtraction are the core values of darkness. This explains why the devil took away a staggering 1/3 of God's angels. He stole value from God. That's why God chose us and called us sons. Sonship does not have anything to do with the male gender. Son ship means to bear the nature and character of the source. We are called sons of God because we bear fruit and make disciples of all nations. We don't divide his body and ostracize his chosen. We always leave a place better than we meet it.

This is Jacob, the generation of them that seek Him, the generation of them that seek His face. This is a new age. Desperate times require desperate measures. We have forcefully advanced since the days of John the Baptist and we are not about to relent. Yesterday’s methods cannot dislodge today’s devils. We must retrieve the axe head and sharpen the saw. A new age requires a new kind of wisdom (Eph 3:5). Whenever a new age arrives, a new set of sons are deployed. Revelation, Wisdom, Insight and Strategies that were hidden in times past are now being revealed unto the sons of this age for tearing down corruption and building new nations.

I AM ONE OF THEM!

EXPLOITATION and CHILD TRAFFICKING

Microsoft Encarta Reference Dictionary explains trafficking as ‘having dealings with something or someone’ and could also mean ‘engaging in illegal trade’.
Child Trafficking was the main point of discussion on Channels TV’s Rubbing-Minds show. The guests talked about the numerous factors contributing to this universal ill, and aired divergent views on how and when to determine at what point, trafficking takes place.

Child trafficking is an illegal global business worth several billions of dollars. It has being a serious concern particularly in Nigeria, where it has become pervasive and everyone seems to be unknowingly involved somehow.
My focus is basically on the key distinguishing factor in Child Trafficking, which is Exploitation.
Exploitation occurs when we take advantage of situations, circumstances, positions and conditions in order to derive unmerited, unethical and sometimes illegal benefits.
Child Trafficking must therefore involve elements of selfish gain and narcissistic tendencies.
We live in a society segregated according to economic strata, and this inadvertently creates a tensed environment where occupants at the base struggle to progress, obviously by systematically collaborating with the more fortunate ones (living in urban cities).

We must however understand that the larger part of Children being trafficked are extracted from rural (poor) areas and traded to city inhabitants (middle to upper class) where they serve as helps, nannies and so on.
Now, going by the fact that those who harbour these little ones in cities are being labelled accomplices and could be indicted, many of us with kid house-helps may be committing serious crimes.

However, wait a second! Someone brings a young kid to my house, I feed him, cloth him, send him to school, treat him well, grant him opportunities he may never have had in life and still send money to his guardian(s) (or contact persons), and then you call me a criminal???
I bet many would ask that question.
I applied my judgement to this situation and here’s what I have to say.

Value is the underlying determinant and basis for defining exploitation.
Think about it: I offer to buy a pair of shoes from my friend at N5000, even though he bought the same at N30 000 before realising it wasn’t his size. Now, some shylocks out there could argue that I got an excellent bargain, but the ethical and sustain-ably thinking business minds amongst us would quite accurately admit that the best bargains are win-win partnerships where everyone goes home happy. It’s called fair value for money!
I once worked in an organization that paid staff poorly, and reportedly had an unwritten policy of firing or letting any disgruntled employee go. Management would reportedly say there are thousands of people willing to take your job at half your current pay!

Back to the main point: Every child has basic universal rights which include education, health-care and the likes. To deny them any of these rights under any circumstances is criminal.
However, I would intelligently argue that to keep a child (brought from God knows where) in my house would not necessarily translate into committing a crime.
Note that there are significant culture issues and traditions that may have fuelled this illegal activity, but I believe there should be unambiguous constitutional guidelines that clearly indicate what pre-conditions must have been met in order to convict or classify anyone as an accomplice in child trafficking.

We must that realise that (economic) value is personal and individually assigned. We all have a price irrespective of what the market says. The market provides us with only an average price, or how would you explain two guys working at the same company, doing almost the same job, but one earns thrice the other. (It’s real and better believe it! Don’t ever assume you are on the same level with the guy sitting next to you in that cubicle! He may know his worth and have negotiated something entirely different!)

Therefore, in the case of more mature kids who have given their consent to serve in the mansions and outfits of taskmasters, the fact that they (or their guardians) are paid meagre amounts and treated less humanly may not constitute sufficient background to press a charge.

I believe the standard approach to solving problems of any nature is to first identify the root-cause(s) and then attack it. You would agree with me that increasing income inequality, slow or virtually inexistent industrialization and concrete economic development, ineffective rural empowerment programs and of course, malfeasance and poor leadership are major culprits here. We are all familiar with these discouraging terms and realities, but we certainly against hope believe that there is Hope, and that nevertheless a new prosperous society would emerge soon.

Learning point: We can analyse as much as we like and appeal subtly to the hearts and emotions of people to help mitigate child trafficking and its attendant consequences, but believe me, until we are able to offer practicable solutions, re-orientate and provide better alternatives to our people, we may not achieve significant results.

Have a lovely week folks!