YOUNG FATHER USING SON TO BEG AT PHOENIX/OTTAWA ROBOT
Early this morning around 8am (May 24 2023) I was driving from
Cornubia to Ottawa when I was taken aback to see a young father using his son
to beg at the robot leading to Phoenix on the left and to the Cornubia
Industrial area and Ottawa to the right.
The young boy could be around eight-years-old and
should have been in school.
Seeing people begging at robots is a common sight but
parents using their children to beg at robots is totally unacceptable.
At other times I have seen a young lady using her
daughter to beg at the same robot. It is not clear whether the young father and
mother and the children belong to the same family.
I have spoken to other beggars at the robot and they
all say they have no alternative but to beg at the robot because they have no
other opportunities to earn some money.
What is tragic is that the boy and the girl are
supposed to be at school but instead are being used to beg at the robot? Where
are the social workers?
Two to three decades ago we never experienced this
type of social situation. At that time, we had some of the finest social
workers and they would visit and help families affected by unemployment or
other deteriorating social conditions.
The social workers at that time would also ensure that
children were not abused and that the children instead attended schools in
their areas.
What has happened to these social workers? Many of them
may have left the profession but what about the new social workers? Are they not
as committed as their previous colleagues who all went the extra mile to ensure
that the children attend schools and attain decent education?
What the sight of this young father using his son to
beg at the robot demonstrated is that we don’t have leadership at grassroots
levels anymore? If we had community leaders like we used to, this type of
situation would never be prevalent today?
Something must be done and one hopes that religious
and cultural leaders would come to the fore and make their presence felt in helping
people who find themselves outside the mainstream of our communities.
Committed actions need to be taken by all role
players - social, cultural and religious groups - to find a solution. Ends – subrygovender@gmail.com May 24 2023
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