The desire to become rich is not evil but the issue is how to make amass wealth.
The youth particularly have become more desperate to become wealthy to the extent that is alarming.
The mindset of the youth that money is the cure to all ills or problems in life is a myth.
To some frantic young people, life is all about riding in flashy cars and garnering unmerited prominence.
But wealth is more important for human development and survival.
This makes the youth see becoming rich as a must pursuit, a do-or-die assignment that is slowly killing the brighter future of our hope.
The sad reality is that many of them have taken extremely desperate measures to attain wealth.
The exotic lifestyle and showy display of wealth on social media by politicians, celebrities, and influencers, have made the youth think that life is a bed full of roses.
Where are our values?
We must return to our traditional family values where charity begins at home.
The young generation must be taught good virtues, hard work, and patience.
There is no shortcut to being wealthy without determination, dedication, and hard work.
The Bible and Qu’ran approve of hard work, wealth, and money.
The youth must be encouraged to embrace entrepreneurship and skills acquisition so as to be independent and avoid social vices.
The youth want to become wealthy at all costs quickly because that is the way to survive the present-day Ghana.
They see it as the best path to gain power and influence.
Life has now been reduced to money and fame as a result of life challenges.
Good name is now disregarded and riches have been hailed in the 21st Century.
It now seems impossible to curb the unquenchable quest for wealth by the youth. They would sacrifice anything to become wealthy.
Society has prioritized and considered money as an end in itself and not a means to success.
Many young people are resorting to whatever means to acquire wealth legally or illegally. This is the only way they think they can fit into the social setting.
Shockingly some youths of today see illegal means of making money as normal. Some of them consider money rituals, fraud, and robbery among other crimes as normal and more rewarding.
They see education and learning as a vocation as a long way to success.
Unfortunately, these means of making money or becoming successful is deadly and death trap.
The desperation of some youth to join the rank of powerful and affluent in society is the reason for the incessant desire for money and wealth among the youth.
The numerous killings by young people are painting a very dark picture of the future of Ghana.
It appears the media, religious groups, parents, and society are unable to uphold the virtue of hard work and condemn the craving for money and wealth.
No wonder some young people engage in money rituals, and other crimes such as scamming, including Internet fraud and money doubling.
What is more worrying is the fact that young people use human parts, and blood and engage in abominable acts all to get rich quickly.
Some young people travel from afar to communities known for performing money rituals, all to get rich overnight to fund their expensive lifestyles.
All that they dream of is how to buy luxurious cars, and mansions and make trips abroad, to show off.
In Ghana, some youth have become adventurous and travel to neighbouring countries, Benin, Togo, Nigeria, and Benin Burkina Faso all in search of ill-gotten wealth.
“Sakawa,” which involves Internet fraud combined with African traditional rituals is popular in Ghana. This practice by the youth may involve the use of victims’ fingernails, carrying corpses, and body parts, and sleeping in the cemetery.
The media has been partly blamed by a sector of Ghanaians due to the seeming increase in the visibility of spiritualists on television and radio. The spiritualists lure unsuspecting and vulnerable individuals promising them quick money.
The National Media Commission (NMC) and the National Communications Authority (NCA) should collaborate efforts to stop the media from using its networks to publicize the activities of spiritualists. The two organizations should check media content.
Institutions tasked to enforce laws regulating media activities should live up to expectations. Citizens must collectively and willfully uphold acceptable values that shape the morals of the youth.
The government must also ensure that the entertainment industry, which includes the media, literature, music, radio, television, and educational institutions, aligns with the nation’s culture to shape the mindset of the youth.
The youth constitutes a greater percentage of the country’s human resources and is key to national development.
There is, therefore, the need to make them stay away from getting rich quick attitude and rather put them on the narrow path of ingenuity and hard work.
Alister John, a young Ghanaian has been arrested for killing her employer and bolting with her cars.
Desperate for wealth, the 22-year-old man murdered her Madam two weeks after he was employed as a houseboy.
Reports indicate that Alister was already a wanted criminal due to a previous crime committed months ago.
The suspect according to reports had disappeared with the cash of a Mobile Money business evading arrest until this recent case.
Killing her Madam
Alister John who was hired as a security guard took advantage of the fact that he was living alone with his employer, named Afua Ahenkan to commit this unpardonable act.
After committing the crime, it is alleged that Alister bolted with the woman’s car and some other belongings.
In a viral video, Alister John can be seen in police custody, handcuffed, and he appears to be pleading for his life. He also expresses his intent to return the stolen items.
How Afia Ahenkan was murdered
According to sources, Afia Ahenkan planned to attend an event at her 11-year-old daughter’s school.
After dropping her daughter off at school, she hurriedly returned home where she was confronted by an unknown group that included Alister.
The sources indicated that she was subjected to a gruesome ordeal that left her in pieces.
After committing the heinous crime, Alister engaged in conversations impersonating the deceased and sending messages to her friends.
Alister John is currently in police custody assisting investigations.
The deceased has been confirmed to be the wife of legendary Ghanaian footballer, Reverend Osei Kofi.
Information gathered also indicates that the husband of the deceased triggered an alarm for the search of the deceased after three days of not hearing from her leading to the discovery of the dead body.
Information later emerged that during the terrifying ordeal, while on a phone call with a close friend, Afia Ahenkan screamed in agony, saying her last words, “They are Killing Me O!”
These haunting words were spoken on the very day she had intended to attend a significant event at her daughter’s school, marking a heartbreaking turn of events. Together with his accomplices, the Asokore Mampong remanded him when they appeared before the Court on Tuesday, September 19, 2023
