Between Gen Z and Our Elders

In Nigeria, everyone refers to the older generation as “our elders”. We talk about how “our elders enjoyed Nigeria!.” “They had free education!” etc.

This is quite unfair. Not everyone who is older enjoyed these things. It isn’t right to categorise everybody over forty into one demographic and then put all the blames for out current failures on them.

To be fair, I wouldn’t blame most Nigerians for resorting to this. After all, there’s no Nigerian nomenclature for referring to the older generation. No demographic cohorts like they have in the West.

What I’ve seen some people do is to use Americanised terms for them. Terms like Baby Boomer, Gen X, etc.

When I see people do this, I get cringed to the depths of my bone marrow. Why would you refer to a seventy year old Nigerian as a baby boomer? Did Nigeria have a baby boom?

For ease of reference, I’ll refer to this Americanisation of everything as the Yanqui memeplex. It’s what happens when people adopt American/Western cultural norms without pausing to think about whether or not it applies to their local circumstances.

Some people do it to sound hip. After all, if you know what baby boomer and gen X is, then you could consider yourself exposed.

But it’s cringe.

To be fair, it would be wrong for me to castigate Nigerians for using those terms when there aren’t any local terms available. They’re just using the next best tool available.

Before colonialism, we had things like age grades to do the heavy lifting for us. But those days are long gone. Our cultural structures are constantly being assailed by the memeplex.

Which is why instead of lamenting and castigating Nigerians for falling prey to the memeplex, I would instead provide alternatives.

I am going to be dividing the generations by their birth years. I’ll also use the significant cultural/political events in the formative adulthood of a cohort to determine what name to give it.

I would also be skipping some much earlier generations like the ones for people like Herbert Macaulay, Alimotu Pelewura, etc. Because information on that period is kind of hard to come by.

At least, you won’t say I did nothing.

Independence Generation (1901 - 1927)

The people born within these years would go on to be the ones to lead the political fight for Nigeria’s independence. This includes the likes of Obafemi Awolowo, born in 1909, Nnamdi Azikiwe (1904), Michael Imoudu (1902), Sir Ahmadu Bello (1910), Tafawa Balewa (1912), Aguiyi Ironsi(1924) you know the rest.

This generation would go on to found political parties in their 30s, and would lead Nigeria to independence in their 40s - 50s.

Members of this generation are currently aged 98 - 124 years. Most members of this generation today are dead. Very soon, they’ll become ancestral when the last living person from the cohort dies.

Second Republicans/Class of 66 (1928 - 1945)

For those of us who are very angry and are looking for a generation to point to and blame for all our current woes, it is this generation. This generation would witness Nigeria’s independence in their early adulthood.

They would be dissatisfied with the performance of their elders at the helms of affairs, and would literally kill off their elders to take the reigns of power for themselves.

Yes, I am talking about the class of 66. The set of military coup leaders who ruled Nigeria for much of its independence. This set killed off their senior political and military elders in the coup(s) of 1966.

They would also be the leaders/generals in Nigeria’s civil war.

Members of the class of 66 include the likes of Yakubu Gowon(1934), Murtala Mohammed (1938), Olusegun Obasanjo (1937), Kaduna Nzeogwu (1937), Ojukwu (1933), Ibrahim Babangida (1941), Muhammadu Buhari (1942), Sani Abacaha(1943), etc.

Their civilian counterparts would contribute to classic Nigerian art and also be the politicians of the Second Republic. They include -Shehu Shagari (1925), Wole Soyinka (1934), Chinua Achebe (1930), Olusola Saraki (1933), Fela Anikulapo Kuti (1938) etc.

Members of this generation from the West enjoyed “free education” under Obafemi Awolowo’s AG. Then they seized the reigns of power and plunged the country into the abyss. Although, Obasanjo tried tho (shout out to OBJ).

If you’re memeplexed and are looking for Nigeria’s version of the “evil boomers that destroyed our country”, it is this generation.

Members of this generation are currently aged 80 - 97 years.

1946 - 1964 The Oil Boomers

This generation experienced Nigeria’s post civil war oil boom in the 1970s. The Arab oil embargo created a large windfall for Nigeria. So large that Yakubu Gowon, who was head of state for most of this period, was heard to have said that Nigeria’s problem wasn’t money, it was how to spend it.

Members of this generation became adults when everything for Nigeria was looking up. Notable members include the likes of Bola Ahmed Tinubu (1952), Goodluck Jonathan (1957), Bukola Saraki (1962), Umaru Musa Yar’adua (1951), Bukola Saraki (1962), etc.

This generation would come into its own in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic in the early 2000s.

If Nigeria continues being shit, maybe this would be the generation we would transfer aggression to.

Members of this generation are currently aged 61 - 79.

The Structural Adjustment/June 12 Generation (1965 - 1980)

If there’s any generation of Nigerians that we can say had it rough, it is this generation. They grew up under military rule for most of their lives. They also matured in the 1980s - one of the worst periods economically for Nigeria. This period was after the oil boom of the 1970s, and it also coincided with military rule.

So, this generation is pretty repressed/oppressed.

The chance to experience freedom for this generation was during the return to democracy on June 12. However, that was also truncated, and this generation had to witness Nigeria turning into a full blown dictatorship under Abacha.

Notable members of this generation include Omoyele Sowore (1971), Babajide Sanwo-Olu (1965), Rotimi Amaechi (1965), Uba Sani (1970), Shehu Sani (1967), Nyesom Wike (1967) etc.

Members of this generation are currently aged 45 - 60 years.

1981 - 1999 Return to Democracy/Millenials

This generation went through the shenanigans suffered by the previous generations while still kids. As adults, they got to witness Nigeria transition into democracy. They also enjoyed the Obasanjo led revival of the Nigerian economy. Just like the oil boomers, this generation experienced a Nigeria that wasn’t so bleak and dreary, compared to their predecessors.

This generation also saw the rise of the internet and smartphones. But they also came from a time when these things weren’t available. I remember personally using java phones to downloads games back in the day. Saw the rise and fall of blackberry. The introduction of the iPhone, and the Android.

This generation and the older cohort of Gen Z was also the driving force behind the EndSars protest.

Members of the this generation include Gbenga Agboola (1985), Don Jazzy (1982), Shola Akinlade (1985), Ezra Olubi (1986), Davido (1992), Wizkid (1990), and me, of course.

Seems like our mates are yet to enter politics. Don’t worry, our time is coming.

Members of this generation are aged 26 to 44 years.

2000 - 2015 Indomie Generation/Gen Z

Everyone calls this generation Gen Z. But when I was growing up, it was usually referred to as the Indomie generation. At this point, I would give in to the memeplex and just call them Gen Z.

This generation grew up with the ubiquity of the internet. Their experiences around the globe are kind of similar, because of the interconnectivity of the internet. So, Gen Z in the Nigeria are trying to be influencers, just like Gen Z in the USA.

We all know members of this generation. No need to highlight them.

So, in conclusion, I’ve tried. Let’s not refer to everyone above 50 as “our elders who destroyed Nigeria”. And worse off, we shouldn’t give in to the memeplex and use American terms instead. That’s just cringe. Let us learn to think for ourselves, and come up with our own nomenclatures.