Parents should take responsibility

THE EDITOR: It is my opinion that parents are responsible for the violence and apathy that are so pervasive in our society. When a situation turns adverse we tend to censure the most susceptible persons and judging from the newspapers, I can clearly ascertain the extent to which the Government is being held accountable for the worsening of our youths, which undoubtedly results in a major part of our country’s sordid crime wave. Mind you, I faithfully believe that the Government should do their part in eradicating these acts of violence being executed by our youths; but at the same time parents should take responsibility in guiding their children through the right path. Parents who believe that it is the Government’s responsibility to enforce discipline in our youths have truly been subjected to a grave misconception.

Alas the Government is being held blameworthy, but the situation should not be about who is to be held accountable, but in fact should be about each party taking full responsibility in doing their part. After reviewing the statistics one can clearly see that most of these criminals are between the ages of 16 and 25. Subsequent to assessing this fact I can only ask, “where are the parents of these young men and women?” and “what hinders them from doing their part?” People have been blaming society, the Government, or the school systems but these groups don’t raise your children. The schools may have a big impact on your children, but you (the parent) are responsible for your child’s upbringing. Schools teach subjects, parents teach morals and values.

The Government can spend millions of dollars and invest thousands of man-hours to defy the crime spate, but if our youths are being exposed to undesirable upbringings therein lies an even greater challenge for what the Government has to face. The point is parents’ main purpose in life is to ensure that their children are raised in such a way as to produce a productive, contributing member of society. If this isn’t what you anticipate doing as a parent, then don’t become one. Parents need to wake up and accept that the problem of crime being carried out by our youths does not begin overnight and that careless nurturing and lack of good parenting contributes to a major part of our present crime era.

NATHALEA GEORGE
South Trinidad