Children in Kisii County have been advised to report any form of abuse to credible authorities that would not collude to deny them access justice on reported cases of abuse.
This advice was given on Friday by Gucha South Sub County Education Director, Ms. Emily Isie while officiating over commemoration of the Day of the African Child (DAC) in Kisii County at Nyamarambe grounds.
She discouraged children against keeping quiet because of threats or enticements issued by abusers because they would not be given a chance to continue abusing them once they were arrested.
“Majority of those who abuse you are people who you are very well conversant with and they take advantage of the fact that nobody will believe your report of abuse since the abuser is someone known to you and your family members,” Ms. Esie said.
She warned those parents who do not want to speak out when their children are abused and instead accept to be compromised by the abusers who continue living in the community perpetrating more crimes of abusing children.
“Those parents and relatives who resort to ‘Kangaroo courts’ in resolving matters of abuse on their children are messing big time and risk being arrested and prosecuted because matters that threaten children’s security, growth and development cannot be handled in such courts,” the education director warned.
Ms. Esie further encouraged parents to faithfully execute their parental role and strive to meet their children’s needs to prevent them from falling prey to abusers who won them over by enticing them with money to buy their necessities or goodies which parents have failed to provide at home.
“To enjoy a stable economy in future in our country, continent and world, we need to establish a stable foundation for our children while they are young but if we neglected and abuse them, then our future is bleak because those to move it forward and stabilize it will have been completely shattered,” the officer noted.
The Gucha Sub County Children’s Officer, Bernard Ngugi who was standing in for Kisii County Children’s Coordinator echoed the director’s sentiments and urged community members to ensure they also played a role in protecting children against abuse even from their parents.
“You are their watchdogs on matters abuse because forums to exhaustively discuss matters affecting them are limited,” he said.
This year’s theme for the commemoration of the Day of the African Child observed on 16th of June annually is ‘Leave no child behind for Africa’s development’. The day is being officially commemorated in Kwale on Saturday.
By Deborah Bochere
