Chief Initiates bye-laws to deal with child neglect in Apam Area

Apam (C/R), June 24, GNA-The Chief of Apam, Nana Effrim X, has put in place bye-laws to deal with child neglect and noise making at night in the area.

Nana Effrim who announced this at a meeting with Church leaders at Apam on Sunday said offenders would be fined 50 Ghana Cedis when arrested by the Taskforce that has been formed to enforce the laws. He said children below 18 years who would be seen at the beaches, operating corn mills, riding bicycles and patronizing video centres during school hours would be arrested and their parents fined. Nana Effrim was dismayed that "some religious bodies often chanted from 1800 hours to 0300 hours despite the existence of laws on public disturbance, adding that such lawlessness would no longer be entertained in the town".

He called on religious bodies to allow peace to prevail, adding that "all those who flout the regulation on noise-making after 2200 hours would not be spared".

The Gomoa West District Social Welfare Officer, Mr Wallace Akyeampong, hinted that statistics in the district indicate that about 30 per cent of children in the area are neglected by their parents. He noted that such irresponsible behaviour was against the law and therefore urged parents to desist from the practice. Mr Akyeampong said it is the responsibility of parents to provide the basic needs of their children and expressed regret that in most cases some children in their uniforms were seen loitering at the beaches or watching pornographic films at video centres, or riding bicycles during school hours.

The Reverend Father Patrick Offin of the Roman Catholic Church said school enrolment in the Central Region was very low and appealed to stakeholders to help reverse the situation. The Reverend Captain Godwin Kumeto of the Salvation Army Church, called on parents who are in the habit of rushing to schools to fight with teachers who punish their wards to desist from that act because it does not promote discipline.