THE MODERN Barbadian parent has failed to pass on the positive values that they got from their parents to their own children and are now confronted with offspring that no longer embrace politeness and good manners.
So said assistant commissioner of police acting Eucklyn Thompson as he addressed the Grassfield/Duncan community at the launch of their neighbourhood watch yesterday afternoon at Grassfield St Philip.
“Little or no attention is being paid to how our children speak, what they wear or with whom they socialise . . . politeness, good manners and other social graces are no longer embraced by our children as we the adults have forgotten that these attributes were at the core of our upbringing and development.”
The senior policeman also said the Barbadian society had only been prepared to deal with times of plenty and now was finding it difficult to deal with hard times, but as resilient people the time had come to show that adversity could be overcome.
He told the residents that they were launching the Watch amid a decay of values and principles in the society.
“This is not to say that that the organs of governance are not functioning but the close links which exist have been stretched in recent times that activities which propelled them are not so energised to consistently achieved growth and productivity.”
The assistant commissioner also said that too many Barbadians gave up too early improving their lives.
“Amongst our jobless population are skilled well trained people who have benefited from excellent training in our education system. The fear is that such talent can come to nought if there is not a commitment and a purpose to rise above barriers, pitfalls and hurdles,” Thompson said.
He told Barbadians that they must not bury their talents and then blame someone for their lack of success.
