Naivasha children’s officer Francis Njagi has decried the high number of street children in the sub-county.
Speaking to our reporter in his office on Wednesday, the officer said that the number of children on the streets in Naivasha and the adjacent towns is alarming.
Njagi blamed the situation on parents, whom he accused of failing to take up their responsibilities. He added that parents have neglected their roles and left their children to explore the world on their own.
“I want to ask parents in Naivasha to seriously take up their parental roles, we do not want to see children loitering in the streets yet they have parents,” said Njagi.
He further noted that the rise in street families is as a result of high living standards, peer pressure and high rate of school dropout.
The officer also intimated that the sub-county will conduct a major crackdown on street families with the aim of rehabilitating some of them and taking others back to school.
Njagi further warned parents who failed to take their children to school saying they risk arrest and prosecution, adding that any child found roaming in the town will be arrested together with his or her parents.
“We want all children who have reached the age of schooling to be in school, we will ensure that all those found loitering have been arrested and stern measures taken against them,” he added.