'A Child Needs A Present Father'

Cavin Kanoko | Monday June 17, 2019 15:10

He also emphasised the need for presence of a father in a child’s life at the commemoration of the Day of the African Child. 

Gaborone City Council (GCC) held the celebration at the Babusi Community Hall on Friday morning, two days ahead of June 16 also marked for Father’s Day.   

“Today we are here to talk about how we can protect the rights of our children as parents and stakeholders in their lives,” Ndadi said during his speech that touched on the theme, ‘Humanitarian action in Africa: Children’s rights first’.  He called on parents to make sure that they protect their children from harm, as there are a lot of negative things that could affect the lives of children.

He put a lot of emphasis on the issue of children knowing both their parents, especially their fathers.  He urged all the children in the audience, who do not know their fathers, to go to his firm for consultation.  The celebration boasted of participation of different schools from around the city, both public and private.

The commemoration was preceded by competitions that were held in light of the theme with the winners announced at the event. 

The competition included painting, essay writing and poetry done by students from primary to senior secondary.  In attendance were not only Ndadi, who was the guest speaker, but also delegates from the GCC, teachers, parents and students from the participating schools.

A student from the children’s forum, Lentle Tanyala advised students to refrain from violating their own rights, as it is not just the duty of their parents to protect their rights. 

She also pointed out that Botswana should focus on building an empowered and developed child who will be able to make a change. The event had performances from Rainbow School, Marang Junior Secondary School and the poets from the competition.