20 Jun 2022

Fathers must play a meaningful role in the upbringing of their children, Kgosi Lewatle Kgosiyareng of Mongala II Ward in Kanye said Sunday at a fathers’ day celebration. 

“We all have to understand our value in children’s lives and what they miss out if we are not there,” he said. 

He said fathers’ absence from children’s lives made life difficult for families, with some children detouring towards disastrous practices such as alcohol and drug abuse. 

Where fathers were absent, mothers were forced to play double parental roles, leading to children, especially boys missing out on proper role modelling, he said. 

Kgosi Mongala II said all responsible father knew to take care of their children and that any man forced to take care of his children was a disgrace. 

He thanked Distribute Love Society, an NGO focusing on the welfare of children and the elderly, for organising the event, and urged the community to support them, as they had the potential to positively change communities’ lives. 

Councillor Shimane Thelo of Lotlhakane East said it was important to celebrate fathers and remind them of the important role they played in children’s lives. 

He said being a father was a big job that came with challenges, hence the need to appreciate them. Mr Thelo said it was important to show the positives of the presence of fathers in their children’s lives, to groom them into responsible citizens. 

Another speaker, Ms Lebogang Ragabane explained that both parents were equally important in children’s lives, hence both mothers’ and fathers’ day should be celebrated. 

“We are because of the roles played by present fathers and we have to appreciate that. We all have to respect and love our fathers just like we do our mothers,” she said. 

The Director of Distribute Love Society, Ms Dintle Thuto Ragabane said they organised the event to appreciate present fathers, and remind them of their value in raising responsible men and women. 

Ms Ragabane said they realised that fathers were not as much recognised as mothers, hence the need to change that and show them that they were equally important in their children’s lives. 

She added that a family without a father was usually affected by social ills due to lack of guidance from a father. 

“Both mothers and fathers have respective roles to play in the upbringing of their children and if either of them is absent, in most cases, it will show in the way children turn up in life,” she said. 

Ms Ragabane advised fathers that a divorce or sour relationship between them and the mothers of their children should not affect the children. 

“No matter what happens, you have to be present in your children’s lives, they are not supposed to suffer because of your issues,” she said. Ends