SOCIO-RELIGIOUS IMPACT OF “QUICK MONEY” SYNDROME AMONG YOUTHS OF UYO METROPOLIS

SOCIO-RELIGIOUS IMPACT OF “QUICK  MONEY” SYNDROME  AMONG YOUTHS OF UYO METROPOLIS

CHAPTER ONE

Introduction

• Background of the study

The demand for instance result is seeping into every corner of our live. This is basically the disease that makes youths give into short cuts through nefarious activities in order to get rich¹. This mentality is however not peculiar to youths in Uyo as many young people in Nigeria today wants to drive a jeep without sweating. Consequently, they engage in many unwholesome activities such as armed robbery, kidnapping, yahoo-yahoo, murder, and ritual killings etc. as a mean of getting rich with ease and/or a sudden leap. This phenomenon of quick-money-syndrome has particularly taken a worrisome stance and indeed a despicable turn in Uyo Metropolis as some of the activities involve the violation of people’s human rights².

In the time past, wealth and riches had been a product of hard work, commitment and perseverance but the truth is that many youths in Uyo Metropolis today have lost their true sense of value, self sacrifice, hard work, endurance and perseverance.  The byproduct as well as the irresponsibility on the part of youths is  being highly infectious and has eaten deep into the psyche of the young people. The practice of quick-money exist in the families, churches, schools, banks, government agencies, market places, universities, town unions and social clubs³ etc.

Onyejiakwu found that most families in Nigeria do not have the quantity of money, which the need to provide for themselves basic needs for survival.⁴ This poverty situation breeds hunger and starvation and predisposes member of such families especially our youths to engage an illegal means of survival.⁵ Even in communities where there are no strong social control against delinquent behaviour, religious commitment and involvement protect youth from antisocial behaviour both minor and serious.

Therefore, this study appraises the socio-religious impact of quick-money-syndrome among the youths in Uyo Metropolis.

• Statement of Problem

Much have been written in recent decades about the experience of inordinate desire to acquire money overnight. From general observations, the severity of immoral actions associated with quick-money-syndrome such as peddling hard drugs, committing armed-robberies, prostitution, murder, human trafficking, electoral thurggery, 419 fraudstering, assassination, kidnapping, and ritual killings,  has reached a point where common decency can no longer be described as common⁶. Also in popular literature and personal accounts, views of the wealthy and the means of acquiring wealth by many have been largely negative. Yet, no empirical study has been done on this subject matter. This is very worrisome because the sudden leap attitude has the tendency of exerting negative influence on the society. It follows that the way by which a person comes into wealth is an important determinant of how wealth affects the personality and character of the person involved as well as other members of the society⁷.

The fact that the values of hard work, honesty, modesty, prudence, and dignity of labour has been relegated to the background as a result of the quick-money-syndrome is a very serious problem in the society today which poses a tremendous barrier to the moral, spiritual, social and economic development of the Nigerian populace especially the youths. This lends credence to the fact that, there are many outcries against immorality with this lifestyle in the Nigerian society today. Also, the level of indiscipline and crime waves among the youths has seriously escalated in geometric progression due to wrong value orientation⁸.The gravity of the issue of quick-money-syndrome therefore, has motivated the researcher to examine the socio-religious impact of the quick-fix syndrome among youths in Uyo Metropolis.

• Objective of the Study

Quick money is a serious socio-ethical problem. Therefore, its impact on society permeates the social, religious, and cultural realm of the society. This study will specifically seek to achieve the following purposes.

• Bring to the fore, the moral decadence among youths in our contemporary society especially Uyo metropolis in particular with regards to the quick-money-syndrome.
• Examine the negative influence quick-fix-syndrome on the youths by those who have made it successfully through these fraudulent means.
• Proffer some suggestions on the way forward concerning this phenomenon in our society as well as the possible solutions towards tackling the situation.
• This work will serve as a stepping stone for further research on other related contemporary issues connected to sudden wealth in our society.

• Significance of the study

This study is significant in the following ways:

First, quick-money-syndrome phenomenon is a deadly socio-ethical problem in the Nigerian society and efforts should be put in place by governments and different organizations and even well meaning individuals to checkmate the problem in the society.

This research work therefore, seeks to contribute to this aspect by taking a survey of what the people especially young people are doing to resolve this moral crisis associated with the youths in the Nigerian society. Secondly, it seeks to contribute to the pool of literature that has been generated about the sudden wealth in the society and serve as a resource or reference material to others who may want to undertake further research in this area. Thirdly, the research is expected to chart a path for the critical appraisal of the central role of quick-fix or sudden leap in the society. Finally the study is expected to serve as a source of encouragement to hardworking and morally upright young people in the society, as this will enable them to know that their efforts, no matter how little, are not in vain.

• Scope and Delimitation of the Study

The problem of quick-money-syndrome cuts across the communities in Nigeria, and Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital is not an exception. This study therefore, focuses on the socio-religious impact of the quick-money-syndrome among youths of Uyo metropolis Akwa Ibom State. The research work is limited to Uyo, Akwa Ibom State because it is the state capital and economic center. This therefore attracts a high concentration of youths from different parts of the state who are pursuing various commercial and economic activities in the city. Therefore, the necessary information required for this research could be best gathered from them.

• Research Methodology

The approach adopted for this study involves descriptive survey methods of research. This methodology will include questionnaire, interview and observation. In this regard, Nworgu viewed research design in any area of study as a plan or blue print which specifies how data relating to a given problem should be collected and analyzed⁹. It provides the procedural outline for the conduct of any investigation. This study is an investigation into the socio-religious impact of quick-money-syndrome among youths of Uyo Metropolis. This study therefore employs the survey technique. In this regard, Bello and Ajayi took a descriptive survey research to mean those studies which are aimed at collecting data through observation, interview or questionnaire and describing in a systematic manner, the characteristics, features, peculiarities, nuances or facts about a given phenomenon or population¹⁰. The descriptive method of research employed in this study helps in understanding the processes that are going on regarding// quick-money-syndrome and the opinion that are held. The survey design will endeavour the researcher to obtain a fresh information through the means of an interview, questionnaire and personal observation. Information gathered for the study is both primary and secondary source. Secondary source of data include published works on the subject matter such as internet, newspaper, textbook, the primary source will be made up of qualitative information from oral interview and personal observation.

• Organization of work

This work is arranged in five chapters, each chapter having subheadings to give clearer understanding into this study.

Chapter one introduces the study, it looks at the statement of problem, objective of the study, delimitation of the study, methodology and organization of the work.

Chapter two reviews available materials and other related literature on the topic.

Chapter three focuses on providing background information on the study area.

Chapter four analysis reasons for the rush for quick money by youths using data.

Chapter five is the concluding chapter. It offers a succinct summary, conclusion and recommendation to the work.

• Definitions of key terms

Youth:  In the American National Youth Survey by Elliot it was shown that having peers was the best independent predictor of self reported offending behaviour.⁴ Youth is best understood as a period of transition from the dependence of childhood to adulthood’s independent. That why as a category, youth is more fluid than other fixed age groups. Youth is often referred to a person between the ages of leaving compulsory education, and finding their first job. The United Nations, for statistical purpose, defines “youth” as those persons between the age of 16 and 24 years, without prejudice to other definition by member state.⁵

Syndrome:  A disease or disorder that involves a particular group of signs and symptoms.

Impact:  To have a strong and often bad effect on (something or someone).

Socio-Religious:  Involving a combination of social and religious factors.

Quick money: This connotes money generates through an illegal or unethical activities, fraudulent enterprise.

End Notes

¹ Bradley, 2000, p. 50.

² Bradley, 2000, p. 54.

³ Human Right Action, 1997.

⁴ Onyejiakwu, F. O. (1991) Psychology of Adolescence Nigeria.  Rapid Publishers.

⁵ Woolfolk, A. (1998) Educational Psychology. 7^th ed. New York: Allynt Baran.

⁶ Elliott, D. S. (1994). “Serious Violent offenders: Onset, Development Course and Termination” The American Society of Criminology 1993 Presidential Address, Criminology 32:1-21.

⁷ United National Assembly Resolutions

.

⁸ Bello-Iman, I. B. (2004). Corruption and National Development in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic , Ibadan: CLGRIDS,

⁹ Bradley, Susan. Sudden Money: Managing a Financial Windfall,

New York: Wiley, 2000.

¹⁰ Bradley, 2000, p.49.

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