Lately, there has been so much fuss revolving around the bold proposal orchestrated by distinguished judges of the Court of Appeal to lower sexual consent age from 18 to 16 years.
This move comes in amidst a crucial time when there has been relentless mechanisms put in place to empower the girl child. Furthermore, parents around the country are yet to come to terms with the Court of Appeals mouth gapping proposition.
A substantial number of Non-Governmental Organizations, churches detest the idea claiming that it will grant ill minded folks a free pass; to molest their adorable naive daughters and sons at a tender defenceless age.
Nonetheless, conclusive facts as well as figures from the Performance Monitoring and Accountability 2020 report stipulates that our innocent boys and girls have gotten way ahead of themselves. Yes! They engage in sexual intercourse under our noses. Here are some of the contributors facilitating their sexual endeavours.
Poverty is an undeniable predator raging terror and havoc in the society which ultimately renders people vulnerable to questionable schemes. It’s unfortunate that teenagers have fallen culprit to advances that involve partaking in sexual activities in exchange for favours. The perpetrators of such heinous acts choose their prey wisely and present themselves as friends yet they have a deadly plan to execute.
Life is full of challenges and teenagers do battle with their own Goliaths from time to time even though adults seem to dismiss this obvious fact. It is at this moment that their instinct for survival kicks in and it only takes a little psychological nudge to seduce them into something. Lack of basic resources creates awkward situations which enables wicked individuals to sexually exploit kids in exchange for favours and kickbacks.
It is time for parents to come out of their dugouts and have that decisive sex talk with their teenagers by streamlining as well as highlighting crucial details. Our young adults lack a sense of awareness and direction which leads them in an expedition to explore sexuality guided by curiosity.
Pursuing this further, along the way they get bombarded with mind-blowing ideas from friends, interested suitors which they will be tempted or lured to try out. The changes in teenagers happen so abruptly and they cannot fully comprehend what is going on. This is where you as a parent come in to provide insight as well as guidance to enable the young adult cope with the situations as they arise.
Lastly, the society has played a crucial role in ensuring that our young adults are fully exposed to content beyond their cognitive comprehension. Additionally, the things we do as adults do have long lasting impressions on our kids since they learn by picking up clues from our actions.
Consequently, the society as a whole needs a complete overhaul in terms of moral uprightness since our actions are betraying the values we believe in. We tend to shun and mock immorality yet we openly engage in fornication, adultery.
Written by Burns Noah an undergraduate at Kenyatta University pursuing BSc Petroleum Engineering
Twitter: @The_Analyst00