Ghanaian Parenting And Culture Can Lead To Criminality

Ours is a culture rife with people pleasing, materialism, greed, gossip and hipocrisy. Many Ghanaians want to look good to others and they will do anything not to be gossiped about or be deemed inferior. However, a smart person knows what other people think of them is none of their business.

How does this relate to crime?

Some Ghanaian youths and adults get into criminal behaviour, involve themselves in gangs, armed robbery, political theft, corruption and other forms of criminality because their parents and the culture teaches them to be greedy, obsess over having money and be a people pleaser. Even though many Ghanaians pretend to be Christians. It seems that what man thinks is more important to them than what God thinks and they are slaves to men. It also seems that they serve money not God. The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.

That's why it is easy for Ghanaian youth to get groomed by Gangs in the west and in Ghana. They think money and being respected and loved by their peers is important. Therefore anybody buying them designer clothes and given them a lot of money can easily persuade them to join their criminal enterprise. Corruption and theft appear were those of high profile sit. After all they need to steal and buy their 25 cars so people will know they are doing well. Since many in Ghana are taught to prize money, materialism and other people's opinions they start to get jealous of others who have made it big and have so called success. Many parents also compare their children to others and berate them when they are not making it as big as their peers. Therefore many feel pressure to have money and a good reputation by any means necessary.

However, God does not teach that. God is not a respecter of persons. God despises pride. God does not share worship. People pleasing is a form of idol worship. God did not create us to worship a fellow flawed human being. Also God doesn't care how much money you have in your bank account. A true Christian knows God will supply all their needs and money is not God. What God prizes is goodness. A human being who loves God, themselves and their neighbour. This person is hard to lure into crime because they are not lustful for the riches of this world. They are storing up treasures in Heaven.

Even if you don't believe in God, if you love yourself and your neighbour. You won't be lured into doing things to pretend to be somebody you're not. If you love yourself what people think about you doesn't matter. You will not cheapen yourself to doing things just to make money so others will clap for you. A person who loves themselves will work hard to make themselves comfortable, but they won't become a slave to greed. A people pleaser is a coward. Unable to live their own life. The reason many Ghanaians do not love themselves is because they have been taught not to praise themselves but to rely on the approval of others. Many have not been taught to love themselves from their parents who believed harsh discipline would give them model children they could show off. Instead of them raising their children to love themselves. Their children in turn would make good decisions freely out of love for themselves.

However, many parents themselves were never taught the right way. Therefore all they can pass to their children is what they do. Chase after money, chase after random people's respect and love money more than they love themselves. Sometimes fortunately for them they have ended up in big positions and want their children to do the same. Then carry on the family criminal high profile career business. The ones who are not so lucky either spend their whole lives living sub par chasing the riches they think they deserve. Their children do the same or end up acquiring the wealth and the status their parents wanted, but have no concept of self. The very unfortunate fall into crime on the streets which may lead to their death, prison time, or a life of emptiness hurting other people and God avenging the other people on their behalf. It's very likely their children will follow in their footsteps. Chasing money and the approval of others is no way to live.

Nevertheless, modern Ghanaian culture prizes making money above all things, even at the expense of yourself. As well as worshiping other people's opinions and becoming a big person. Yet the country will call itself Christian. When being a good person, loving God, yourself and your neighbour is not what makes a person great. Crime is so attractive to some Ghanaians because the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. Peer pressure bankrupts people. The country and Ghanaians all over the world will continue to go downhill, and crime will always be attractive to many. If we don't learn as a people we are more important than money and what other people think of us. It's not just Ghana and Ghanaians which have this problem. Many countries in the world do. That's why crime continues to rip lives apart.