A Member of Parliament in Kisii County has expressed fears over increasing cases of teenage pregnancies in the area, saying they are derailing the education of the girl-child and performance in national examinations.
Consequently, Dorice Donya Aburi, the Kisii County Women Member of Parliament, has challenged education stakeholders to concert effort to reverse the trend and help shun disruption of the education and lives of the school going girls.
The Woman Representative noted cases of incest as rampant in the area and that perpetrators settle the matter at the villages, violating the rights of the victim to access legal justice.
“I challenge chiefs, clan elders and security officers to ensure that the culprits are arrested and prosecuted for the victims to get justice” Donya said while speaking at Tendere stadium, Gucha sub county after she donated foodstuff, clothes and shoes to impoverished locals.
The MP, accompanied by area Ward Representative, James Ondari ( Boochi Tendere Ward) noted that a majority of the victims were from poor families and some government officers colluded with the perpetrators to cover up the matter, terming it wrong and unacceptable.
“We want defilers and rapists to be arrested, prosecuted and incarcerated so that our girls can be safe, complete their education and exploit their potentials” Donya stated.
She challenged residents to shun subjecting the girl-child to the Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and early pregnancies, adding, the children should be given a chance to access and complete their education without disruptions.
Ondari warned older youth against impregnating school children and appealed to the parents and guardians to report them to police for arrest and prosecution whenever they do.
“There is no need to ruin the lives of the girls from poor families and burden their parents. There are woman who have completed schools and are ready for marriage” Ondari said.
He noted that parents and guardians were forced to take care for the children and had no time to work on their farms and domestic work, terming it unacceptable.
The MCA appealed to the government to enact more punitive laws against people who defile or rape girls in order to deter others.
By Emmanuel Gwakoi
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