In an era where digital and real-world lives are inextricably linked, a clarion call has been issued from an unexpected quarter: the legal profession. Mr. Hakeem Jimoh, an Ilorin-based legal practitioner, has framed parental vigilance over children’s social media use not merely as good advice, but as a fundamental duty to safeguard their future. His warning, delivered in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, cuts to the core of modern parenting challenges, urging a move from passive concern to active, informed oversight.
Jimoh’s central thesis is that parental neglect in the digital sphere—often born of busy schedules or a lack of technical understanding—unintentionally grants social media platforms an outsized role in a child’s moral and behavioral development. “Many parents neglect children’s behaviour early, unintentionally encouraging imitation of social media trends,” he states. This is not about occasional scrolling; it’s about the formative power of repeated exposure. Children, whose prefrontal cortices are still developing impulse control and critical reasoning, inherently lack the filters to discern between curated online personas and reality. They absorb trends, challenges, and lifestyles as templates for acceptable behavior, assuming that if it’s popular online, it’s sanctioned offline.
The lawyer identifies a triad of dangers from unmonitored exposure: moral risks, societal harm, and the adoption of false lifestyles. To expand, these are not abstract concepts. Moral risks can include exposure to cyberbullying, hate speech, or content that normalizes dishonesty or cruelty. Societal harm manifests when online behaviors like public shaming or destructive trends spill into schools and communities. Most insidiously, false lifestyles—the relentless portrayal of perfected bodies, luxurious consumption, and drama-filled relationships—can seed anxiety, depression, and a distorted sense of self-worth in young minds. Jimoh argues that allowing a child’s worldview to be shaped primarily by these forces is a profound abrogation of parental responsibility.
So, what does effective monitoring and guidance look like in practice? Jimoh advocates for a balanced approach built on presence, dialogue, and foundational values. It begins with being “responsible, available, and attentive”—which in today’s context means:
1. Proactive Engagement: Go beyond passive supervision. Sit with your child, ask about their favorite influencers, and explore platforms together. This builds trust and opens lines of communication.
2. Guided Correction: When harmful content is encountered, use it as a teachable moment. Discuss why a trend is dangerous or a portrayal is unrealistic, providing the moral context social media lacks.
3. Value Instillation: Actively counter the digital noise by instilling discipline, empathy, and critical thinking from childhood. This internal compass becomes the child’s best filter when you’re not there.
Jimoh delivers a particularly pointed critique of “over-pampering without discipline,” warning it undermines development and erodes societal values. In legal terms, he is highlighting a potential duty of care. Just as parents are expected to protect children from physical harm, there is a growing imperative to protect them from digital harms that can lead to tangible consequences—from school disciplinary issues to, in extreme cases, legal liability. His perspective suggests that in future, a parent’s complete disengagement from their child’s digital life could be seen as a form of negligence.
The ultimate message is one of empowered responsibility. Monitoring isn’t about spying or fostering distrust; it’s the modern equivalent of knowing your child’s friends and their influences. It is a continuous process of providing the guidance, supervision, and correction that algorithms never will. By fulfilling this role, parents do more than protect their child; they actively participate in building a generation capable of navigating the digital world with resilience and integrity.
(Source: News Agency of Nigeria, www.nannews.ng)
