NOT CHILDREN RESPONSIBILITY TO RAISE CHILDREN

It is not the responsibility of children to raise other children in a family; that duty belongs to the parents. Younger children should never sacrifice their education for older siblings, nor should older children bear the unfair burden of their parents’ irresponsible reproductive choices.  

You cannot have countless children you are unable to support, then shift the responsibility of raising them onto your other children.  

If you are a child blessed with financial means, it is commendable to support your siblings’ education or well-being. This is an act of humanity and solidarity not an inherent obligation.  

Today, many young adults are shackled by the financial weight of caring for their parents’ children. Others suffer mental health crises due to familial pressure and emotional blackmail often from parents or even siblings.  

Countless older siblings resort to extreme measures just to salvage the consequences of their parents’ recklessness, striving to keep younger ones from ruin.  

I recall a woman at a local church years ago, weeping because her husband’s family demanded more children despite their poverty. They lived in a single room; her husband earned meager wages as an okada rider. Yet three children were deemed not enough. 

Scripture reminds us “A wise parent leaves an inheritance to their children” not debts, trauma, or unsustainable burdens.  

Before parents impose financial responsibility for their children onto an older sibling, they should first transfer ownership of tangible assets: a business, a cashew plantation, or property. Only then would they have grounds to demand accountability though such coercion remains unjust.

Until the moment when will shall dance in white Greater Grace.

Oyugbo Osagie Jonah 

Oyugbo JONAH Osagie