The Montserrado Children’s Forum has called on the Government of Liberia through the Ministry of Education to include the Children’s Law into the primary and secondary curricula for the academic year 2022-2023.
Speaking at a press conference in Monrovia the speaker of the Montserrado County Children’s Forum Sekou Kamara said, since the establishment of the Children’s Law, children in majority are yet to know their rights and responsibilities even though many awarenesses have been carried out.
Sekou is quoted as saying”We want to sincerely state, never will we sit on the sidelines and pretend all is well when the majority of Liberian Children are intimidated on a daily basis only because they do not know their rights and responsibilities.”
He at the same time assured the public that Montserrado Children’s Forum will never betray the mass of the Liberian Children they are determined to be more committed, especially in these times.
The speaker of the Montserrado County Children’s Parliament further that there are so many potential benefits when a child knows his/her rights. He named:
- The child becomes to know what is right or wrong.
2.The child becomes his or her own advocate.
3.The child starts to implement his/her rightful responsibilities with child labour as an exception.
4.The child starts to distinguish between discipline and misconduct, and so on. Children ignorant to their rights is indeed a misery to humanity and an invitation to violence.
He is also quoted as saying “according to Article III, section 9.2, The Government of Liberia shall ensure that primary level education is free and compulsory in line with Education Law. Besides, session 9.3 states that the Ministry of Education shall provide and encourage the enrolment of children into school and re-enrolled in school or alternative forms of education for those children who may have dropped out of school.”
Meanwhile, the Montserrado Children’s Forum said it has observed too many children are left out of school to sell on street corners in order to raise money for food and school. Stating that this is due in large part to the high tuition charge by private schools.
They, however stressed that accessibility of education to children has not been easy even though Article III section 9.3 is clear. Describing the situation as a tragic confrontation to the children of Liberia.
They, however called on the education Minister hon Ansu D. Soni, to put an end to the difficulty children faced in accessing education, threatening unspecified actions if nothing is done.
They also lamented that those children who have been languishing on the street should be worked on, so they too can be educated in line with session 9.3 of Article III.
They also reminded the government and parents that Liberia is a signatory to many International laws which seek to ensure the safety of all children. Some of which include African Chapter, UNCRC etc.
