This weekend, the birthdays of two notable Nigerians were celebrated.
One is worth $23.5B (Forbes) and the other is worth $96m (according to various online sources).
The one of the man worth billions of dollars was celebrated quietly in his house in the presence of a few friends.
The one of the man worth millions of dollars made media headlines across Nigeria and trended online. The location of the birthday bash was the Transcorp Hilton in Abuja. The hotel was virtually on heat and the crowd was overwhelming, though it was an invite only event. The buzz from the birthday vibes was trending on all Nigerian social media space and everyone who had logged online or watched any national TV station learnt about his birthday.
The difference between the two men and the way they celebrated their birthdays is simply an issue of personal preferences in life’s choices. While one chooses a loud lifestyle, the other chooses a reserved and modest lifestyle. It is not a reflection of their worth, impact on the society or contributions to the lives of their friends and family, like some narrow quarters would want to have us believe.
Yesterday, I stumbled on a video online where the son of Warren Buffet, Howard, was driving a farm tractor and came to learn that he runs a 2000 hecter farm in Nebraska and Illinois. He’s worth around $400 and has sat on some of the biggest corporate boards in America. His father Warren is worth $163B. Some children of someone worth $1B may not even want to work all their lives. It is clearly a matter of life’s choices and upbringing.
I am writing this because we often want to make people’s personal lifestyle a standard for others. Since the loud birthday trended online, we have seen several opinions online trying to narrowly justify someone’s personal life’s choices as the pedestals for wealth or impact. As it is Dangote’s choice to be modest, it is also Obi Cubana ‘s choice to be loud. None is a standard for others and we should leave it there as nothing but life’s preferences.
Media Narratives Are Often Skewed…
I have read of an expiriment conducted by the FBI some years ago, where 17 FBI agents and an individual were kept on a queue, making them 18 persons. A drawing of a square was then passed to the first egent. When asked what the shape in the drawing was, he said a triangle. The other 16 egents also said it was a triangle. So when it got to the turn of the 18th individual who was not an agent, he became confused. He clearly saw that the shape in the drawing was a square but in order not to sound strange, he answered that the shape was a triangle too. The FBI did this to demonstrate how media narratives can influence our personal Judgement.
This is what the media does to our minds. It is why we should be careful of what we project, especially because of the younger ones who are not equipped enough to decide for themselves what is right from wrong.
I hope I passed the message as intended?
Phils
13/04/2025
