COMMENT: Let’s be firm with our children to avoid breeding miscreants

The story of a man who killed his father and dismembered the body, is a gruesome read. Also, the tale of a man who still lives with his parents but insults them with unprintable language makes the heart bleed.

The man goes to the extent of threatening to kill his parents and grandmother, who he even refers to in unpalatable terms.
The stories have one thing in common – extreme disrespect for elders.
We ask ourselves, what could have gone so wrong that a child has the guts to kill their parent and desecrate the body by cutting up even the private parts?

What drives a child to have the gall to raise their voice and make distasteful comments about their parents’ private parts?
The man who insults his parents so disgustingly is a step away from killing them.

These are symptoms of a society that is losing ubuntu. Our children are getting so used to having their way that they have become bold to this deplorable extent.
They have rights that protect them and they have become masters at manipulating these rights to always do as they please.
Some parents believe letting children run wild is giving them love, when it is actually developing them into spoilt brats that have no respect for anyone or anything.

We believe that is how we are breeding social misfits and psychopaths that are doing the most inhumane things.
While children’s rights are a very commendable development in the civilized world, we believe that if applied inappropriately, they contribute to these despicable acts that are unAfrican.

Our children deserve the freedoms that the country’s laws but as elders, we have to ensure that they know that every right has a corresponding responsibility.
For instance, the law criminalises beating children but as parents, we must be firm enough to let them know that to enjoy the right of avoid being beaten, they have the corresponding responsibility of respecting others.

They must follow the rules laid down by the parent who feeds and shelters them.
A true parent would never want anything bad to happen to their children and the rules they lay down are designed to keep the children safe.

If a child is not following these rules, we say a stick in time saves nine. Do not spare the rod.
It is way easier to train a child in the way they should grow than trying to fix a damaged adult. Let us be firm with our children to avoid breeding miscreants who become problems to society tomorrow.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *