Clergy Calls for Prosecution of Parents of Out of School Children.

By Lucky Isibor.

The Executive Director of Justice Development and Peace Caritas Initiative of Uromi Catholic Diocese (UROMI- JDPCI) Very Rev. Fr. Fidelis Arhedo has called for the promugation of a law that would proscribe punishments for parents of children found outside school during school hours and the children outside school.

             Very Rev. Fr. Fidelis Arhedo

Very Rev. Fr. Dr.Arhedo made the call while speaking at an event organised by UROMI-JDPCI to commemorate the 2022 Child Protection Day,  with the theme, "A Better Future for Every Child: Safeguarding Children's Rights to Education"; in Uromi, Esan North East Local Government Area of Edo State.

The clergy emphasised the need to develop policies, regulations and guidelines that would enforce child right to education more practically so that the education of the children would become inclusive. 

" we can develop some policies and regulations in the country that will enforce child right to education more practically so that the education of children becomes inclusive. 

"For now, let sign into law some  penalties for both parents and children roaming the street, in farm, or market or Hawking or begging in the streets, especially during school hours like 8:00am to 2:00p, Monday to Friday", he appealed.

While charging  governments at all  levels to increase investment in education to improve the quality of teaching and learning in Nigeria, the Uromi JDPCI Executive Director challenged all stakeholders to make school environment more conducive for children to learn.

He explained that the Child Right Day is celebrated yearly by UROMI-JDPCI to call on all and sundry to protect the rights of children who were usually vulnerable and exposed to exploitations

He disclosed that UROMI-JDPCI had established 25 Adolescent Human Right Club in five schools in each of the five local government areas of Edo Central Senatorial District, and conducted learning sessions with the club members, just as it had empowered households, given scholarship and distributed educational materials to children of humble states, for the purpose of returning children back to school.

Delivering a lecture on the theme of the Day, "A Better Future for Every Child: Safeguarding Children's Rights to Education ", the guest speaker, who is the Principal of Lumen Christi International High School, Uromi, Very Rev. Fr. Dr. Theophilus Itama, lamented that 10.5 million of Nigerian children were out of school, adding that there was only 53 percent attendance in the northern part of the country.

He recommended that education should made accessible to very child, and  stressed the need for proper supervision, and the need to put the views of children into consideration.