Indecency in the name of fashion!

Indecent dressing stands out as one of the most problematic social anomalies, which has impacted negatively and destructively on existence at the moment. The battle against indecent dressing is an issue which generates controversy,   not only in Nigeria but also world-wide. In Nigeria today our leaders and even some individuals have tried to initiate bills […]

Indecent dressing stands out as one of the most problematic social anomalies, which has impacted negatively and destructively on existence at the moment. The battle against indecent dressing is an issue which generates controversy,   not only in Nigeria but also world-wide.
In Nigeria today our leaders and even some individuals have tried to initiate bills and create laws that would regulate our public conduct, dressing and behavior in the public. Though, these bills are yet to scale through the tenuous legislative process to become law. But the question often asked is whether parents, schools, guardians and role models in society are doing enough to curb the vogue of the expanding trend of indecent dressing?
It is not weird or even usual to hear a lady tells her friends or colleagues that she has got all the right curves and a good sense of fashion, so she could flaunt it.  It sounds absurd, but it’s common talk sessions among ladies. These ladies dress almost naked and are proud about it because some weird beings have also come to appreciate or pretend to adore them in such filthy attires.
Antony Philips an accountant bemoans the trend, saying,  “Indecent dressing is becoming something of great concern to many in the society. If we have to curb this disease that is fast eating up the moral decency of our children especially, the girls, we have to start from the home. Most mothers want their children to imitate the western culture and their ways of dressing. The aim is just to display their children in a copy-cat manner in line with the supposed modernization they have seen on Television or in newspapers”.
“But somehow, they are exposing these kids to nudity at a very early start in their lives. When these kids grow with such ideology, it becomes hard for them to adjust to a decent life when they become adults. They should also remember that these fashion icons they try to emulate and allow their children emulate are stage actors and never really dress that way when they are with their families or around their children.” 
Though most people blame the society as a whole for the decay in morality, but many still hold mothers responsible for the negative attitude. Mrs. Mary Eneh a lecturer says, the solution to indecency is in the hands of mothers and the family as a whole.
“Mothers are really the one to blame for this societal ill; we see most young ladies display today. Some of them do not even have the time to admonish their children when they dress indecently. They forget that it is what the child learns from home that   he or she takes to the outer world. Though indecent dressing is most times influenced by peer pressure, it is the more reason parents especially mothers should try to keep an eye on the type of people her children associates with. I always use myself as an example whenever the issue of indecent dressing comes up”.
“I was born and breed in a society where it would have been easy for my siblings and I to be indecent if we wanted to. But because of the training we were given and the kind of parents we dare not even try it. This whole argument all boils down to family background and orientation. What my family must have condemned as indecent must have been condoned as decent by other families”, he says.
Frankly, some mothers are guilty of indecent dressing too as they tend to forget that kids learn from and imitate everything that they do. “If mothers were not guilty of such indecent dressings, why would some state governments and government institutions embark on defining dress codes for its staff? Who works in such places, is it the kids or undergraduates or parents? Most people who work in these places are individuals who can be held responsible for their mistakes. Most of them are mothers and fathers of more than three children. So tell me why, should a mother who should be mentoring others and putting her child on the right path in life stoops so low to indecent dressing all in the name of fashion. Sometimes, it beats my imagination when I see such dressings. We as mothers really need to wake up from our slumber to help eradicate this increasing madness of indecent dressing” Hajiya Salamatu Umar, a civil servant, says.
Parental negligence is greatly to blame as most parents allow their children unchecked freedom to behave the way they please, including adoption of resentful dressing styles in the name of fashion. It is logical for some parents to rely on the fact that this is a liberal world. To such parents, we say it is improper not to sanction moral decadence on the simplistic pretext that we are part of a global liberal world.
The idea of being modest has to be taught early in a child’s life. Think of where your child would be in six years time and what you would want your child to hold onto in life. Trying to discipline a teenager on other aspects of life has limited impact on behavioral change, because if they have not internalized the importance of dressing modestly before their teenage years, then there is little that can be done to slow down the train of immorality and indecency in their adult lives.
There are certain facts that people fail to understand and that is if a young girl dresses seductively, men are likely going to treat her as if she wants to be seduced, Halima Sani says “She will only succeed in getting the attention of lustful and deceitful men and not humble and sincere men as suitors. A saying goes that ‘the way you dress determines how you are addressed’ is very true in some instances. No sincere man would want to marry a lady who dresses indecently as his wife for life. The best the man would want from you is for show -off at social gatherings to pass the message that he could seduce and hang out with such a lady. On the other hand, whatever bait you use determines the type of fish you catch. Meaning, if you dress indecently to attract a husband, then you will definitely get an indecent and irresponsible husband.”
The way we dress shows who we are. Encouraging western culture should be discouraged and we should start looking inwards, as our local fabrics can be used to make a distinguished and smart style that doesn’t have to reveal “everything” to prying, lustful eyes. Lastly our actors and artists could make themselves better role models to children and teenagers alike. They should see themselves as agents of change by not portraying too revealing clothes as their first step to contributing to the campaign against indecent dressing in the society. Mothers, this is a challenge and the right step starts from now.