Call for ban on jam sessions by council for children’s services timely

Referring to yesterday’s reports that the National Council for Children’s Services wants the government to ban all jam sessions for students in the country, it is only fair that we echo the same sentiments as a way of confronting the root cause of most of the ills faced by school going children.

These music extravaganzas normally come when schools close and most students are headed for holiday. They are also rampant during mid-term breaks.   When schools are about to open, jam sessions are normally christened “back to school.” Even though some of them are good for children’s development in terms of creativity especially in music and arts, most of them are fertile ground for breeding immorality. It then follows that students who look forward to such sessions spend most of their time preoccupied with thoughts of attending these leisure activities.

One way of curbing problems of teen pregnancies and risks of contracting HIV/AIDs and other STIs is to totally ban these discos. Unplanned pregnancies put young girls in the danger of procuring unsafe abortions which kill some of them in the process. If our security agencies and county governments can outlaw these parties then we would not even need to talk of the need for condoms or pills for the young ones.

This will also achieve the benefit of curtailing the problems of abuse of alcohol, cigarettes and even hard drugs. It would be one way of limiting the market of drug peddlers who make booming business on such occasions.

Boys will also not get the avenue of being inducted into crime as such occasions make them to be swayed to engage in criminal activities under the influence of drugs. They may steal from their parents in order to meet the cost of attending such parties and also to purchase drugs. While at it, they also learn to steal from the public by pickpocketting, snatching bags, mobile phones and other valuables. They also inflict injuries on themselves by use of pocket knives and crude weapons because they always arm themselves since these parties are normally held at night. This is how they eventually become serious criminals in the society. 

 

Another attendant problem occasioned by such clubs, which will be greatly solved if the call for the ban is heeded, is the low academic performance in schools. Students will then be able to concentrate on their studies instead of spending their valuable time during weekends and holidays partying.

Law enforces should further ensure that Mututho Law (Alcoholic Drinks Act 2012) that prohibits the sale of alcoholic drinks to persons under the age of eighteen is properly implemented. Additionally, it is the onus parents to observe the movements of their children and offer guidance on suitable leisure activities as they teach responsible behaviour.