Immoral and Socially Irresponsible Leadership in Our Governments Departments.
Apparently the Health Ministry yesterday officially launched the much-talked about Integrated School Health Programme, and they will be distributing condoms to learners in schools. This is a pure demonstration of immoral, unwise and socially irresponsible leadership of our country. Whatever reasons the department is giving are relevant but the solution is to the highest degree stupid. They are trying to resolve a seriously rooted issue of immoral lifestyle by feeding and encouraging a generation of self and social irresponsibility. This might be a clear indication that the Education Department, apart from failing to improve in terms of academic excellence, they also have no sense of social responsibility.
Our children should be equipped with both self and social responsibility, not be encouraged to be immoral or be sexual perpetrators. Yes they are sexually active but we need to look at what drives or influences their desire to do so rather than making them feel that it is morally right to continue with such behavior. It doesn’t help to mop the floor when the tap is still running. Our education system has drifted away from being a source of responsible living both academically and socially to academic failure. They may justify their decision under the fact that the HIV, other sexually transmitted diseases and teenage pregnancy are on the rise, which is true, but the distribution of condoms or the idea of promoting safe sex will never eliminate or reduce the statistics. This kids know the existence of condoms already and they are not interested, they just don’t want to go through a process which will delay the fulfillment of their immoral self. It is proven that adults are not using condoms while knowing the implication of unsafe sex, for the same reasons as well.
The Health and Education departments should know, if they really pay attention to the social needs and behavior of learners, that the statistics are raised by lack of psychological wellness, which influence the way they think and behave. The laws governing the education department has isolated parental and educators’ responsibility by giving learners unnecessary rights. It’s more like educators are not allowed to play parental role anymore, like it used to be in the good olden days. These children are torn between what their own parents teach them and what the system is encouraging them to do thus creating confusion and producing a rebellious generation. They are forced to make decisions from a confused and torn psychological state, and they end up going for what happens in the environment where they spend most of their time in so as to fit in.
In todays education system, what happens when a learner bunks classes or school? What happens to a leaner who disrespects educators? What happens to a learner who carries weapons to school? They are all protected by the law and nothing much can be done by educators nor parents. The government should spend more money on psychological factors than physical matters. If every stakeholder could get involved in rebuilding and encouraging a responsible society, our schools will be better places for our children to be. But it seems like every department in the government is on its own and bringing its own ideas and then imposing them on another. We need to go back to the basics, the community, the government and private sectors especially the media, should work together if building a better nation really means much to them.
The issue here is not sex but immorality, the government must stop addressing the surface and start focusing on the root of the problem. Does it make sense to encourage children to have safe sex (which they already know) and deny the fact that you are encouraging sexual immorality? A healthy mind produces a healthy body and encourage self-responsibility. The learners need programs that will psychologically empower them, not programs that empowers them physically.
There seems to be no wisdom in our government leadership.
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