The woes of children in the northern region seem not to be over as some parents continue to make sheer irresponsible behaviors in preventing their wards from dangers.
The children in the north often left to their own faith on daily bases in the rural communities while their parents engaged in their usual farming in the farming season and other profitable ventures. Only those who still have their grandmothers and fathers received some guides.
Shetu Mahamudu looking at her soup in an empty tomato tin; mother in multi-colored Lacost behind Shetu’s grandmother
These children engaged in many hazardous activities at home even in the presence of their parents sometimes who watch uncaringly for only God knows their reasons.
Four (4) year-old girl Shetu Mahamudu at Tibung in the Kumbungu constituency was one of the children whose parents display sheer and irresponsible parenthood, watching the potential future District Chief Executive (DCE), Member of Parliament and the president playing with a wild fire.
Shetu under the full glare of her mother, grandmother and some relatives was preparing ‘a soup’ in a very dirty empty tin tomato can on fire while they were busily boiling water for shea butter processing.
My mission in Tibung as a reporter was about sanitation situation in the community but not for irresponsible parents and the impact of their actions on the innocent child.
As African customs and traditions demand, I went to the chief palace to pay homage and my mission in the community, but on my way to Tibung-Lana’s palace was the little Shetu playing with the fire.
When I realized that, Shetu did not know she was playing with a ‘lion’ I pleaded with the second in command at the chief palace the ‘Wulana’ who was leading me to wait in a while.
After my interaction with the onlookers including Shetu’s biological mother, I asked whether they were aware of the repercussions of their most precious and dearest child. The answer was that she was playing, the answer I think, was unfortunate which shouldn’t have come from anyone around the scene particularly the biological parents.
The most astonished and worrying predicament of Shetu was that, she had her right hand fractured when she one day fell inside their compound. She was using that fractured right hand to stir her supposed soup as I was drawing closer to her.
When I started asking Shetu what she was doing, she burst into tears apparently because her parents did not see anything wrong with her in that situation.
Upon realizing that I had to console little Shetu, I quickly removed a PK chewing gum in my pocket and gave one to her and that helped calm her down.
But for the intervention of my PK chewing gum, Shetu’s parents would have accused me of making their child unhappy. Thanks to manufactures of PK and the one who introduced me to PK and advised me to always go with PK.
What I saw reminds me about Pakistani girl Malala Yousafzai who is the first signatory of a new worldwide petition calling for urgent action to ensure the right of every child to safely attend school, with the backing of the United Nations Special Envoy for Education.
But for Shetu only God for now can tell the future of her because as I was told she is 4 years old but the parents are yet to decide whether to send her to school or not.
The Pakistani 16-year old girl who is now calling on world leaders to pay attention to children’s education, her colleague’s faith is yet to be determined by her parents. Malala Yousafazai Ms. Yousafzai’s appeared at the UN Headquarters on 12th July to mark her first major public speech since she was shot in October, 2012.
The petition and the UN event are part of an effort to establish universal primary education by December 2015, the deadline for the Millennium Development Goals, or MDGs, a set of anti-poverty targets set by UN Member States in a 2000 summit.
Miracles would tell whether world leaders’ agenda on children include Shetu in the Tibung community and if not would they have the guts to gather in a well air-conditioned hotel or conference center and say they have achieved the targets set by themselves. Only time would tell!
The geographical location of Shetu, the northern region, leads the number of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) both local and international in Ghana. Many who will be reading this piece will ask what these NGOs are doing over a decade now in their operations in the north, but for the natives and residents in the area, some of the NGOs prefer big cars to their purpose for seeking the funds.