Indisciplined kids: Whose fault is it?

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“Mama Ian leo mtoto amevunja dirisha ya jirani”

“Mama Ian umeambiwa utoe pesa wanunue side mirror Ian aliharibu kwa gari ya jirani”

“Mama Ian…”

In all neighborhoods there is one or two such children. We all know them, and we all wish and pray our children never turn out like them.

Personally, I hear such words being said to my neighbor every day. Her son is what I call a terror. All the neighbours know him. He comes out to play and parents call in their kids one by one. The landlord sands guard to make sure he does not destroy cars. House helps keep checking on clothes to make sure they do not mysteriously fall and pegs go missing. The child is only 5 but everybody complains about him. The mother ignores all complaints and seems not to care what her son gets up to. She has hired a house help who should handle all the issues. The house help tells her the son is good and that is all she needs to hear.

In today’s society most kids are raised by the house help. As parents work, someone else is watching their child. They come home and get reports of bad behavior but they shrug it off and leave it to the house help to deal with. If you happen to get a house help who is more interested in watching Afrosinema than knowing what your child gets up to and instilling discipline, you are doomed.

As your child grows up, they become a terror. They know they can get away with anything and they use this to their advantage at all times. So who is to blame for the bad kids in society? Is it the house help you have left in charge of them or you the parent? Personally I blame the parents. Busy or not, you need to step in and make sure they are disciplined at all times.