18 Nov 2019

Indiscipline, beatings and use of dangerous weapons during brawls have become a concern for authorities in Mabesekwa.

Situated 67km west of Tonota, the village recorded an unprecedented number of reports, most of which involved young people and were alcohol induced.

Speaking in an interview recently, Kgosi Tshwaro Masisi decried the fact that while authorities were trying to mould the youth into responsible and future leaders, some of them engaged in acts that lended them in trouble.

He explained that most young people in his village abused alcohol, despite repeated attempts to mould their behaviour for the good of society.

More concerning, Kgosi Masisi highlighted, was the use of weapons to inflict harm on their peers and beatings whose occurrences were spiraling out of control.

“Young people patronize entertainment venues carrying dangerous weapons such as axes, knives, slashers and pangas which they use to attack others during fights,” he said.

He said some of the victims had lost their lives while others were recovering from injuries sustained during brawls in the village.

The traditional leader also mentioned that some of the culprits had been prosecuted at the kgotla while others had been referred to superior authorities for action as a way of arresting the situation. He attributed this worrying behaviour to heavy drinking that took place outside prescribed hours for the opening of bars.

 According to Kgosi Masisi, when bars open in the afternoon some of these young people would already have been intoxicated hours before. In the past, he explained that they used to call villagers to meetings to address this challenge.

He, however, noted that some of the elders were also involved in breaking the law. Neighborhood watch committees, he added, had their hands full trying to contain the situation.

Kgosi Masisi said one of the challenges that the village faced was failure by parents to attend meetings in large numbers, especially those that they addressed jointly with the police.

On other issues, Kgosi Masisi said they had recorded high numbers of neglected children by their youthful parents.

He said they had discovered that most elderly people in the village were overburdened with providing care for their young grandchildren, while their parents were away having fun.

 “It is common for young mothers in the village to abandon their children. This results in children not getting the best care and this also affects their schooling,” he highlighted.

The village leader said that some of those young mothers had appeared before the customary court to face charges of neglecting their children.

 Young fathers, he also noted, were also fingered in the neglect of their own children. Kgosi Masisi also criticised parents for allowing their young children to engage in sexual relations with elderly men in exchange for gifts and money.

“In the past, it was unheard of for a young girl to bring a boyfriend into her parents’ home and even cohabit in the same household. Nowadays, this is not frowned upon and parents are failing to guide their children to be responsible,” he asserted.

The social worker in the village, Ms Goabaone Mogapi corroborated Kgosi Masisi’s concerns on child neglect and said that they had on several occasions been called to intervene in such cases.

She also mentioned that some children had been abandoned, without parental care in the lands, which was very dangerous and exposed young children to risky situations. Ends