The United Kingdom (UK) chapter of the Nasrul-Lahi-l-Fatih Society of Nigeria (NASFAT) and a renowned cleric, Ahmad Olaoti-Olore, have attributed the rising cases of social vices among youths to improper moral training from parents globally.
They said that if the children get proper parental care and moral upbringing from their relatives, crime and social vices among youths would not have escalated to its present standards.
NASFAT and the cleric advocated that the 21st century required that parents and guardians uphold their
responsibilities in building a better society, irrespective of race or tribe.
This was stated during a special lecture organized by the in Swansea to commemorate the 30th anniversary of NASFAT with the theme: “The Role of Parents and the Challenges They Face in the Modern World.”
Addressing the gathering, the Coordinator of NASFAT Swansea Group, Abdulfatai Omotunde, disclosed that the religious group on its part would be commencing weekly Modirasat (Arabic classes), to assist parents towards inculcating morals in the future generation.
According to him, this initiative will complement the Sunday Asalatul prayers and provide opportunities for children in the Western world to receive proper Islamic education and cultural upbringing for a better future society.
Olaoti-Olore added that the weather system and society of the 1920s are not different from today’s world, saying what has changed is the parenting style which we need to style.
The cleric noted that many of the challenges facing the modern world particularly those related to morality and negative social influences begin with parenting.
While emphasizing that parents are the mirrors of society and play a critical role in shaping the future, Olaoti-Olore outlined three foundational stages in a child’s upbringing, stressed that children between age 0 to 6years needed to be taught by their parents proper hygiene, eating habits, communication development, and others.
“Guidance Stage (Age 6–18): Here, parents must monitor their children’s activities, including feedback from school and Arabic classes, the type of content they consume, their friendships, and the values parents themselves exhibit.
“Independence Stage (Age 18–24): This phase involves granting appropriate independence while emphasizing values such as modesty in dressing, financial responsibility, accountability, public conduct, growth mindset, contentment, sacrifice, teamwork, humility, and consciousness of Allah and societal security”.
He explained that these characteristics reflect the roles of parents and children and ultimately manifest in society.
“A failure in these foundational stages is evident in the behavioral problems often showcased on social media and in communities”, the cleric added.
Olaoti-Olore further stressed that the growing lack of public decorum stems not from governments or educators but from parental failure.
He challenged the notion that today’s world is significantly different from that of the 1920s, asserting that the moral values of our forefathers were passed on to us but today’s parents have failed to uphold these responsibilities, leading to the challenges we now face in our homes and communities.
He stated that the only path to restoring peace, respect, dignity, love, and a better society is for parents to reflect on where things went wrong and begin corrective actions. “This is the only way we can build a society we can all be proud of,” he said.
