CHILD ABUSE
Former South African President, Nelson Mandela,
once re-emphasised the power of education when he described it as the greatest
engine of personal development through which the daughter of a peasant can
become a doctor, while the son of a mineworker can become the head of a mine
and a child of a farm-worker can become the president of a great nation. A well
structured educational system is one of the important factors needed for the
socio-economic development of any nation. Universally, it is the duty of governments
to provide enabling environment for learning to take place as well as accord
top priority to education.
It is in the
realization of the foregoing that governments across the universe devote a good
chunk of available resources to the development of the educational sector. But
despite all these efforts, a number of factors still stand as stumbling blocks
in the attainment of this goal. These include insecurity, ethnic
idiosyncrasies, gender discriminations and distance. But the greatest barrier
to education, especially in our clime, is child labour of which street hawking
is chief.
In spite of
legislative measure put in place, Child labour remains a major source of
concern in Nigeria especially in Abia State. Child labour is defined as work
that is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful to
children and deprives them of opportunities for schooling and development.
According to the International Labour Organization, the number of working
children under the age of 14 in Nigeria is estimated at 15 million but Abia has
a whooping share of 2 million. The high level of diverse and tedious jobs that
children execute in dangerous circumstances is particularly nerve-racking.
These jobs include being street vendors or hawkers, beggars, car washers or
watchers and shoe shiners. Others work as domestic servants and farm hands.
Traditionally,
children have worked with their families, but today children are forced to work
outside the home environments for their own and their family’s survival.
According to current data, 30% of pupils drop out of primary school and only
54% transit to Junior Secondary Schools. The chief reason for this low
completion rate is child labour. It is not uncommon to see children as young as
eight years hawking on major roads and expressways. Metropolitan cities like
Lagos are replete with such children and teenagers. They meander through the
ever busy roads in the metropolis hawking items ranging from plantain chips,
popcorns, newspapers, pastries to pepper and tomatoes. In fact it is now a butt
of joke among commuters that the hawkers will soon engage in mobile grinding
and blending of these peppers and tomatoes!
What are, indeed,
worrisome and saddening are the usual stories of hit and run drivers killing
and maiming these future leaders. In addition, these child hawkers suffer from
fatigue, irregular attendance at school, lack of comprehension and motivation,
improper socialization, exposure to risk of sexual abuse among the female
hawkers and high likelihood of being involved in crime. Also, these children
become financially independent at a very young age because the extra income
they bring is needed to augment that of the parents and consequently, the value
of acquiring formal education or skills become unattractive to them.
While a good
number of them went into this venture under the guise of raising funds for
their education or skill acquisition, but in the long run the financial gains
accrued from hawking usually take their minds off the original reason for
embarking on the business. And researches have shown that, children who engage
in income earnings outside the home display poor educational achievements.
Although
successive government at Federal and States levels in the country have accorded
priority to educational and entrepreneurial development of the youths in order
to empower them for future challenges, the efforts have not been yielding the
desired results as a result of low school attendants by the concerned children.
Only recently the Lagos State Governor, at the 4th quarterly town hall meeting
held in Badagry, announced an educational development fund of N10billion.
This is in
addition to the earlier N25billion Employment Trust Fund, earmarked to tackle
unemployment as well as promote wealth creation through entrepreneurial
development, particularly among the ever growing population of youths in the
State. The employment fund initiative, applauded by all, is set up to bridge
the deficit skill and policy gaps, as well as tackles inadequate financing. It
provides financial support to residents for job and wealth creation and also
gives equal opportunities to all citizens as part of the all inclusive
governance policy of the present administration in Lagos.
Furthermore, the
Lagos state government, in spite of the fact that it has the highest number of
primary and secondary schools in the country, has been delivering on the
promise of providing free education at these levels and has continuously
engaged in the construction and rehabilitation of classrooms and conveniences
in Local Government areas across the state. In order to cater for formal skill
acquisition trainings, the State has additional 5 Technical Colleges. This is a
sharp contrast from Abia State Government which is indifferent to the welfare
of the entire citizens including the children.
Despite all these
interventions in Lagos State, the menace of street hawking still continue
unabated in the Lagos metropolis, particularly on major expressways such as the
Ikorodu Road, Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway, Lagos Island etc. An unfortunate
incident that occurred recently in Lagos where a teenage hawker was crushed to
death is an attestation of the dangers inherent in street hawking. As a result
of the aforementioned incident which generated a lot of outrage from residents,
the Lagos State Executive Council resolved to enforce Section One of the Lagos
State Street Trading and Illegal Market Prohibition Law 2003 which restricts
street trading and hawking in the metropolis. The law makes both the hawker and
buyer liable of the offence with a punishment of N90, 000 or six months jail
term for both parties.
It is believed
that if effectively enforced, the menace of street hawking will be a thing of
the past and education which remains the best way to empower the youths and
prepare them for future challenges will take its pride of place in their lives.
It is very crucial that government exerts ample political will to ensure that
enforcement of the law is not in any way compromised. This is in view of the
fact the talk around town is that with time government’s initial ‘gragra’ might
soon fizzle out. This must not be allowed to be valid.
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