25 Sep 2022

Ikago Centre in Molepolole should not be regarded as a prison, but a place for rehabilitation for children who “are in conflict with the law”.

This was said by the Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Mabuse Pule during a tour of the centre recently.

The assistant minister said the idea behind the centre, which he said he established when he was a civil servant, was not to imprison juvenile delinquents, but to rehabilitate them so they can play a positive role in their communities.

“This should not be regarded as a prison. As you can see, we do not have a tight security in these facilities as we want to build an environment conducive to our purpose,” he said.

He said a good environment did not nurture criminals, adding it was better to rehabilitate the juveniles than allow them to mix  with hard core criminals in prison.

Mr Pule urged the staff members to be mindful of how they treated the young boys, saying their actions should be aligned with their purpose of rehabilitating the boys.

He said some parents were to  blame for the wayward behaviour of their children, acknowledging that some parents raised their children right but they fell off the wagon, due to peer pressure.

 Adding however, that the onus was also with the children.

“They must be responsible for their own lives and stop vandalising school property and equipment,” he said.

Director in the Department of Social Protection, Mr Joseph Kgabanyane said the school opened its doors in 2001, to house and rehabilitate juvenile delinquents. He said the rehabilitation programme should be beneficial to the learners, who are under 18 years, to enable them to continue with their normal lives and be accepted back in their communities.

Mr Kgabanyane said upon their admission at the institution, the children went through a needs assessment, where their family and personal lives were assessed before the rehabilitation programme started.He said some had graduated from the facility and were running successful businesses.

The centre has a capacity of 100, but at the moment there are only 14 students, taking classes in bricklaying and plastering, to equip them with skills they could use to better their lives.

One of the big challenges facing the school is lack of water, which is however, common in parts of Molepolole. Ends