Writers 
Honestly, I think we need to have this conversation.
We have Mathematics.
English.
Physics.
Chemistry.
Biology.
Economics.
Government.
And parents are paying millions and billions of naira in school fees because they want their children to have the best education possible.
But after all the money…
After all the private schools…
After all the certificates…
WHERE IS THE CHARACTER?
Because sometimes I look at what is happening in our society and I genuinely wonder what exactly we are teaching these children.
You see a young person talking to an elderly person like they’re talking to their mate.
You see children insulting their parents.
Some children are even raising their hands against their own parents!
WHAT HAPPENED TO RESPECT?
What happened to basic manners?
What happened to being able to say good morning?
What happened to saying please and thank you?
What happened to knowing that you don’t have to agree with an older person, but you can still disagree respectfully?
And before somebody says, “Respect is not about age.”
Yes, I agree.
But disrespect is not suddenly good because you are young.
You can disagree with someone without insulting them.
You can correct someone without humiliating them.
You can have boundaries without becoming rude.
That’s character.
And this is why I keep saying character needs to be taken seriously in education.
Because what is the point of spending millions educating a child who eventually becomes a brilliant professional but has no integrity?
What is the point of producing a child who can solve complicated mathematical equations but cannot control their anger?
A child who can speak perfect English but cannot respect another human being?
A child with excellent grades who lies, cheats, steals, bullies and has absolutely no remorse?
WE HAVE TO ASK OURSELVES WHAT WE ARE ACTUALLY PRODUCING.
And honestly, parents cannot carry all the blame either.
A lot of parents are working morning, afternoon and night just to keep their families alive.
Some barely have enough time to sit down with their children.
Schools have a role.
Parents have a role.
Religious institutions have a role.
And society has a role.
Because even religion sometimes becomes more focused on “bring money and you will prosper” than teaching people how to become better human beings.
Everybody wants success.
Everybody wants money.
Everybody wants breakthrough.
But who is teaching our children integrity?
Who is teaching them that you don’t have to cheat to succeed?
Who is teaching them that another person’s suffering shouldn’t be entertainment?
Who is teaching them empathy?
Discipline?
Accountability?
Self-control?
Honesty?
Respect?
CHARACTER.
Maybe we should actually have a subject called Character Education in Nigerian schools.
Not one random assembly where someone tells children to behave themselves.
An actual subject.
Teach it.
Examine it.
Discuss it.
Make children understand that their character matters just as much as their certificate.
Because when these children eventually leave school, society isn’t going to ask them to solve quadratic equations every morning.
Society is going to deal with the human being they became.
And I honestly think we have spent so much time teaching children how to make a living that we forgot to teach them how to live.
And we’re seeing the consequences everywhere.