32 MILLION REASONS

I read a post online; where someone from Anambra state, buried his deceased father in a BMW car worth 32 million naira. I don’t know of the authenticity of this story. It might be true that someone actually did that or not, but what concerns me about this story is the profligate use of money that is involved. Don’t get me wrong; I am not saying that you can’t show love and respect to your parents and loved ones. But my major concern is the use of 32 million naira on a dead being who doesn’t know what kind of car, clothes, coffin or grave you bury him or her in. You might spend a hundred trillion dollars on your loved one’s burial, but it won’t bring the person back, neither will it make any difference to the family of the deceased. They will still be in deep sorrow for their loss. They will miss the deceased all the same.

There are 32 million reasons as to why the lackadaisical use of funds could be used for a more noble cause, but I will stick to just a few of them. Today, Nigeria is experiencing one of her hardest times (economically speaking) since independence. The recent recession status of the country has left a lot of people in abject poverty; where they can hardly afford the basic necessities of life e.g. food, clothing, and shelter. For the very first time in my existence as a Nigerian, have I heard of the rampart occurrences of suicides and intolerable suffering. Employment as it is now; isn’t certain because of the high scale of retrenchment which is intense in the current economic setting of the Nigerian polity.

That was just brief analysis of the level of the present condition of things in Nigeria today. With this brief analysis, we can see that there is a lot of problems to be fixed. This brings us back to the 32 million reasons why one shouldn’t refrain from selflessly assisting people in need. What we need to figure out is that a lot of people are suffering and need to be assisted. Why spend 32 million on a car to bury a dead man who doesn’t know what you have done for him? The irony of the whole story behind this piece is that; maybe when the deceased was alive, he or she never got to feel that level of generosity. It is when he/she is dead, that he/she gets to be showered with such huge amount of love and respect. The morally accepted thing for us to do is always respect and show love to those around us while they are still here with us.

Below are a few things which one could do with 32 million naira that would go down as something noble and beneficial:

1. There are 32 million reasons to share that money (32 million naira) among 320 people (which would be a hundred thousand naira for each person). Doing this might go a long way in solving the short term needs of the 320 people.

2. There are 32 million reasons for one to change people’s lives for the better by giving the sum of a million naira each to 32 people.

3. There are 32 million reasons one could give ten thousand naira each to 3200 people.

4. Even if you don’t know what to do with that amount, (32 million naira) , there are 32 million reasons to give one thousand naira each to 32,000 people and you will be greatly rewarded by God.

5. There are 32 million reasons to disburse one million naira each to 32 different orphanage homes or IDP camps.

From my analysis and study of the different religions I have come to the knowledge of these:

CHRISTIANITY:

Hebrews 13:16 – Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

ISLAM:

Ayah al – Baqarah 2:270 – Whatever ye spend in charity and devotion, be sure Allah knows it all. But the wrong-doers have no helper.

HINDUISM:

For the Hindus, dana (giving) is an important part of one’s dharma (religious duty). Dharma has a variety of meanings such as eternal law, duty, conduct, behavior, morality and righteousness. Each person has a dharma towards family, society, the world and all the living things.

BUDDHAISM:

Give, even if you only have a little.

JUDAISM:

Traditional Jews give at least ten percent of their income to charity (Tzedaka). In Jewish life: giving to charity is an almost instinctive Jewish response to express thanks to God or to request a favour from him.

SIKHISM:

Concern for others is central to the teachings of Sikhism. Giving to the hungry is seen as giving to God – but only if it is genuine giving from the heart.

We have learnt about how different religions advocate for we all (as a matter of religious obligation) to lead a life which is guided by generosity towards other. Putting religion aside; it is our moral/ethical duty to be of help to other people in any little way we can. Giving to others doesn’t necessarily mean that you must be the richest of them all. You should give even when you have little, because rewards and blessings only come from the place of sacrifice. In today’s world, we have people who give for hypocritical reasons. They want to get noticed for doing something for a fellow human who is less privileged. Religiously/ethically speaking, it is not ideal to render assistance to someone for the purpose of getting noticed. It is better to do nothing than to do it hypocritically, because your rewards/blessings doesn’t come from trying to take the glory for doing something which is your moral obligation to do as human.

I am reiterating this point of the need to be of assistance to living people who you see going through hard times, because you don’t know what might happen the next second if you don’t do it at that moment. Trust me; there is no amount of money you will spend on a dead person that will cover up for you losing out on helping him/her when he/she was alive. If you really want to be of assistance or render true charity, do it while it counts.