Pregnancies amongst pupils saddest reality
Tumelo Mouwane | Friday March 31, 2017 16:36
In a full council report delivered by Lobatse Urban Development Committee, representative, Gaomodimo Ntlotlang, stakeholders learnt that at least 24 students dropped out of schools in Lobatse in 2016 alone. Of that number 15 of the students including a 12-year-old Standard Five pupil quit school due to pregnancy.
One of the students was a Form Two student whilst nine were in Form Four and six were in Form Five. Moreover nine of the 24 students dropped out due to desertion. Alcohol related social ills, poverty and lack of parental monitoring were associated with the dropping out of schools.
Emotions swept across when councillors expressed concerns over the issue of school-going child pregnancies in the town particularly at primary school level. Boswelatlou ward councillor, Themba Stimela said serious intervention, especially on educating men should be carried out. He said it is very disheartening to see a situation where a responsible man engages in sexual activity with a teenager who qualifies to be their child.
“The issue of pregnancy in our schools is very worrisome, 15 is such a huge number. I am talking about this as a man. We need interventions, especially with educating men about these issues. How can grown up men have sexual activity with children who can be classified as their children? Where is our society going?” Stimela asked.
“It is very touching to learn that the future of a Standard Five pupil ends there, infested with diseases and their future looking so bleak. The police must intervene and perpetrators be prosecuted.”
Botoka ward councillor, Caroline Lesang, said the revelation was heartbreaking, especially in an era where women’s rights are the talk of the day.
“It is a matter of concern, especially if these cases have went to the extent of 12-year-olds being implicated. This is the time that we must be celebrating women’s rights.
Their futures are being destroyed by reckless men who have families. I don’t know what to say because this issue is emotionally disturbing. It’s high time our social workers take over and report these cases to the police because in most cases, offenders are freed without charge because of the parents.”
“Some of these children copy the behaviours of their parents. Alcohol is also to blame as some parents are bad role models for their children,” Lesang said.
Southern regional education director, Acronews Maseko said the situation is distressing, but they are working around the clock to bring things back to normal.
“…Prevent social ills from destroying our children’s future. The most touching pregnancy case is the one involving the Standard five pupil. Facts at this point are that the child was allegedly involved in sexual activity with a cousin who is also underage. Relevant authorities are, however, following the case,” Maseko said.
Officer commanding District number 4, Alakanani Makobo said sometimes parents become part of the problem because they do not bring the cases forward.
“Cases involving defilement are very serious before the law. We always do our best to prosecute cases and see to it that perpetrators are accordingly tried and convicted, but we cannot do this without the community,” Makobo said.
“We have a challenge of parents who keep such cases a secret because of food hampers (they receive). This makes our efforts to prosecute the cases futile,” he said.