How religious leaders can reduce the menace of cyber crimes and money rituals among young children of today’s society

By ROTIMI ONADIPE

It is no longer news that cyber crimes, popularly referred to as “Yahoo-Yahoo” and money rituals also known as “Yahoo-Plus” are now the order of the day among young children of today’s technology age.

Young children in primary and secondary schools now think and plan to buy expensive phones, cars, houses and other luxurious items when they are supposed to be praying to God, studying the word of God, trusting him, discovering and developing their God-given talents and working on how to succeed in their various careers so that they can become the providers of solutions to some global challenges.

In our society of today, the urgent desire for sudden wealth regardless of its consequences, particularly the get-rich-quick syndrome through cyber crimes and the use of human parts for  ritual purposes among young children is now on the rise.

According to police reports, some unscrupulous people have established internet fraud training centers where young children are being trained on cyber crimes while some parents also encourage their children to get involved in cyber crimes and other criminal activities that can make them to become rich and influential at their early age.

Recently, a teenager who slaughtered his girlfriend for suspected ritual purposes was interviewed by newsmen and he explained how he got “money ritual guidelines” through social media and wanted to practice it.

In another report, the mother of an alleged internet fraudster was recently sentenced to five years imprisonment. According to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), she was found guilty of receiving over ninety one million naira (N91 m) being proceeds of his son’s criminal activities.

While the law enforcement agents are making efforts to reduce the scourge of cyber crimes and money rituals in the society through various strategies, religious leaders also have roles to play to prevent the young children from getting involved in such criminal activities.

What can religious leaders do to prevent cyber crimes and money rituals among young children of today’s society?

1. Religious leaders should preach more on salvation and morality rather than prosperity.

2. They should spend more time to pray for the young children because they are the most vulnerable to criminal activities that are associated with internet usage.

3. They should make sure all children are educated about internet safety before they are allowed to access the internet or social media.

4. They should build a cordial relationship with young children so that they can be counseling them regularly on how to handle social issues.

5. They should collaborate with parents and guide them on how to teach their children in the way of the Lord.

6. They should set up a weekly or monthly program where children can ask questions on any issue that is bordering them.

7. Once in a while, they should invite professionals to hold seminar with young children on how to avoid social vices.

8. They should collaborate with government and non-governmental organizations to sensitise young children on the dangers and lasting solutions to social vices.

9. They should set up a committee to monitor the activities of children during religious programs, particularly the use of mobile phones during religious services.

10. Any young child that is found with luxurious items should be questioned and thoroughly investigated. The parents of such child should also be questioned.

*Rotimi Onadipe, CEO Onadipe Technologies, Founder of internet safety magazine. Tel: +234-8169121819. Email: onatechconsult@gmail.com