TITLE: THE EROSION OF MERITOCRACY
Have you ever attended an award ceremony lately and wondered why a particular person is given the award? That is what is in vogue now-indiscriminate awards. Ironically, people negotiate and pay to be recognised with no set criteria by most organisations that are not even registered or recognised by CAC. Permit my ignorance. Are all organisations award-giving bodies or qualify to do that? ‘What money cannot do does not exist.’ Chawowo!!! The erosion of merit is the right word. How will an organisation feel if a person with a known deviant character displays their recognition plaque in his/her parlour? Let me guess- it may not matter so long as they got their cash.
In a reasonable society, recognition and accolades are often seen as symbols of achievement and success, but a disconcerting trend is the indiscriminate awarding of titles. What should be an event based on merit and genuine accomplishment is now compromised by the prevalence of awards and honours being exchanged for money. This ugly practice has its attending implications- a potential harm to the credibility of recognition.
The landscape of awards and titles is vast, encompassing fields ranging from business and academia to the arts and philanthropy. However, the indiscriminate bestowal of titles for financial gain has become an alarming issue. This trend devalues the worth of legitimate awards and diminishes the achievements of those who genuinely deserve recognition. Legitimate awards lose their significance when it becomes challenging to distinguish between those earned through genuine merit and those obtained through financial transactions.
Meritocracy, the idea that individuals should be rewarded based on their abilities and achievements, is a cornerstone of a fair and just society. When titles and plaques are handed out indiscriminately, irrespective of merit, the essence of meritocracy is eroded. Genuine accomplishments and contributions are overshadowed by a system where recognition is available for purchase rather than earned through hard work and dedication.
This kind of award devalues the hard work and expertise required to earn authentic recognition. When achievement is reduced to a transaction rather than a result of dedication and competence, the incentive for individuals to strive for genuine excellence diminishes. It creates an environment where individuals may focus more on buying accolades than on genuine professional growth and excellence. This, in turn, stifles innovation and hampers the progress of industries and disciplines that rely on the pursuit of true merit.
Why on earth will young people who are supposed to be leaders of tomorrow be the ones destroying the very foundation of society? What an evil innovation! Go through houses of people, and you will see award plaques from different youth organisations for no identified groundbreaking achievement. Surprisingly, some recipients will accept these awards with fanfare and throw a shameless party without self-examination. Most of the awardees are desperate for relevance.
This letter is to let you know that we know that the awards are just an income-generating strategy. We know that you don’t even believe in the award inside you. We know you are a lazy and corrupt organisational head who lacks ideas on financing an organisation.
We should halt the rapid EROSION OF MERITOCRACY, be it in the social, traditional and religious bodies if we desire a society that will be taken seriously.
10-open letters, 7 more to go.
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