AS A SOCIETY, it is our bounden duty to ensure that our children are protected, be they at home, at school or on the streets.
Yes, our children are the future, but first we need to nurture them, guide them and show them right from wrong. Adults have an awesome responsibility to bring up children in the right way and protect them wherever possible from the evil of the world.
As a society, we should cry shame on the recent situation highlighted involving a general worker who befriended the young daughter of Alvin Taitt, the man who rescued his three children from an abusive environment two years ago.
The girl was 12 at the time and this man was showering her with money and gifts. The concerned father complained to officials about this inappropriate behaviour, including to the Child Care Board.
It is shameful that this man was able to repeat his disgusting behaviour at a rural school before he was sent packing some weeks ago. Then to make matters worse, he reportedly did the same thing to two other girls from the same primary school.
What is mind-boggling is that this man had been able to comfortably move around to different schools preying on young girls, even when his actions were suspect. We cry shame on this behaviour and call on the Ministry of Education to provide a reasonable answer as to how this could have been allowed.
Parents must feel comfortable and confident that their children are safe when they drop them off to school on mornings. They must feel equally sure that those who are entrusted with the responsibility of taking care of these children will look out for their general well-being and ensure that no harm will come to them.
Parents leave their children for many hours every day in the capable hands of teachers and other guardians who work at schools. These institutions must be seen as safe havens.
The ministry and educational institutions need to ensure that students are safe from the hands of paedophiles and child abusers.
How is it that an employee with a problem of inappropriate actions towards young girls, can still be in a school system putting others at risk? This is intolerable and unacceptable. How could any reasonable explanation be offered to the parents?
To the Child Care Board, we say it is not just enough to say you have received a complaint about this matter. Yours is just as big a responsibility taking care of the welfare of our children. So to tell this newspaper in a report that the agency did not get involved because the police were investigating, just does not cut it.
To the agencies charged with the awesome responsibility of protecting our youth, we say step up and do your job.
