Mr. Christian Asante, Chief Executive Officer of
"Read for Wealth", a non- profit making organization, on Thursday called on government to come out with legislations that would mete out stiffer punishment to irresponsible parents.
"The daily increment in irresponsibility and child neglect is not only becoming unacceptable but is also leading to so many social consequences
particularly, in the urban centres of the country".
Mr. Asante whose organization has been engaged in the maintenance of porters and other deprived persons in Accra, made this call when "Final Point Foundation", another non-governmental organization honoured him for
his humanitarian support to the underprivileged in society.
Part of the message of the plaque presented to him read: "We want to acknowledge for your timely contributions you have made to numerous
underprivileged groups and individuals in society."
He said: "As much as we agree that some parents are totally poor and therefore cannot take good care of their children, there are others who are just irresponsible and will not even like to see the faces of their children."
The Chief Executive suggested among other things that capable irresponsible parents should be arrested and prosecuted in court, compelled
to apportion part of their monthly earnings to the children and should be made to swear oath of responsibility to their children.
Mr. Asante, who is currently catering for the financial, educational and Health needs of about 700 porters in Accra said there had been several times parents of his dependants had declared to him that they would not support the children.
"Sometimes, I also agree that some children are not respectful, but whether or not they respect you, they are your children and you need to provide their needs so far as you have brought them to this earth."
Mr. Asante also suggested to government to subject such irresponsible parents to mental scrutiny before meting out such punishments as some of them pretend to be mentally unstable.
He also called for the empowerment of the Department of Social Welfare for them to carry out their mandate of taking on irresponsible parents and to rehabilitate abandoned children.
"I have for sometime now engaged my organization in establishing a school for children of porters, providing porters with health care and sometimes food, but the more you solve their problems, the more they come to
us."
He called on politicians to stop politicizing the issue of porters in the urban areas and collaborate to find lasting solutions to the social canker.