Saving for children

IT IS a commonplace to see most parents dreaming of giving their children the best possible to ensure they
live a life free from difficulties and worries. Majority of parents who pray so, may have passed through hurdles growing up and will not want their wards to toe their line.
  Investing in a child’s future covers mainly children's education from kindergarten to tertiary institution covering financial responsibility. Obviously, education is a major expense involved in a child's upbringing. Parents sacrifice a lot to finance all or some of their children's education by planning ahead, implementing simple strategies and saving money as early as possible to achieve the feat. On the one hand, children drop out of school owing to their sponsor’s lack of wherewithal or willingness to further their education and in most cases, their wards prefer joining a trade to going to school. On the other hand, many kids from better off homes may pull out of school as they feel their parents have made enough wealth that will last a lifetime for them.
  Aside that, children from rich home are most likely to lose the core values necessary to inhabit favourably well in the society. There is a saying that pride goes before a fall. A greater percentage of children from well-to-do families see money as an ultimate good which make them arrogant and behave like prince and princess. Most of them hardly respect their elders and look down on people as they feel the air of importance and superiority over the indigents.
  Not all parents who rode a impoverished route to stardom believe in bequeathing fortunes to their kids to live an easy life. One of them is Gordon Somnes also known as Sting. The 62-year old North-East, London rock star who worths 180million pound is of the opinion that his three sons and three daughters are not to inherit in the fortune as he wants them to earn their own living.
  Sting, who has more than 100 people in his pay roll and has donated more to charitable homes, is of the belief that children are not to be spoilt by legacy willed to them as it makes them internally dangerous to individual liberty. In other words, he believed that children would depend on what their parents have provided for them and laziness to make judicious use of wealth or fend for themselves would creep in. He never shrinks in his duties as a father as he had on several occasions saved the kids from troubles.
  To drive the point home, one of the son's of late businessman and a politician, Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola, Deji Abiola was arraigned by Economic Financial and Crime Commission (EFFC), in June, 2011 for allegedly defrauding Hanza Babatunde a sum of 35.5 million naira with the promise that he would supply him printing machines in 2008. The machines were to be imported from Switzerland. It would be recalled that Deji was also arrested in 2009 by detectives from the Special Fraud Unit, Milverton Road, Ikoyi based on the allegation that he defrauded Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) to the tune of about 177mlilion naira. He was said to have obtained a loan facility over goods he said he was importing from the country. His father may have bequeathed assets worth millions to him in his( MKO) private estate.
  Equally, the EFFC on Novenber, 2012 brought before a Lagos High Court, Ikeja, Maman Nasir Ali, the son of former People Democratic Party (POP) Chairman, Ahmadu Ali and three others for an alleged 4.4 billion naira fuel subsidy fraud. It would be worthy to note that they were arraigned earlier on July 26, 2012, on a 13-count charge bordering on 2.2billion naira subsidy scam. There are other people in high places whose children have brought shame to their name or been given coverage in the media for the wrong reasons owing to their inability to manage funds.
  It is often good to follow the Chinese adage which says “teach a man how to fish and not to give him fish.” A child who does not learn the route of breaking hard ground to make money does not know what it takes to make real wealth. Provision of basic amenities and facilities for children upbringing is necessary but bequeathing them heritage they cannot manage at early stage in life would amount to sparing the rod and spoiling the child. Teach a child the way to follow and when he grows up, he will never depart from it.