Recently a 14 year old girl was all over the news because a group of young boys had raped her. She died. They had made advances at her, she rebuffed them. She reported to her parents. The boys visited the house. Some neighbours saw the boys. By the time her mum got home, it was too late. After hearing this, I was really sad. I had to stop to say a prayer for this generation because the times are becoming too evil. I started seeing all the places proactive action could have been taken. I kept seeing how this could have been averted.

Are you still among the people who keep saying “God forbid” or “it’s not my portion” on safety matters? This could have happened to your own daughter, sister, niece, cousin, would you still feel that way? We really need to love and work together to protect ourselves, families and communities. If we do not, this would come back to hurt us all. For starters, this young girl had been well trained at home and that is why she thought it wise to inform her parents when she started getting those advances. What did the parents do to ensure their daughter was secure? How did the boys get into the house? Who opened the door? What did the neighbours do when they suspected foul play was going on? How many other young girls have been harassed and molested by these young boys?

So many questions. Have you noticed that the age range of perpetrators and victims keep dropping by the day? If it is not a baby been molested by an adult, it is teenagers molesting a 14 year old. What are we doing to combat the rise in rape and other vices affecting people around us? If we do not have good hearts, evil will keep thriving. It has been said that evil continues when good people keep quiet. Remember the case of the boy who almost poisoned his classmate in school. What would have happened if the other students who saw it also kept quiet? We need to become our brother’s keeper. Do not think that because you are not directly involved, you are not an accomplice. You are.

How then can we help reduce this scourge?

Intentional parenting

It is true that parents are now becoming too busy with work but that is not an excuse for shabby parenting. We need to be intentional about what we are teaching our kids. No matter how much we love them we will not always be with them. Therefore we should devote our time to teaching them good values, boys and girls alike. Teach them safety precautions, security at home, relating with strangers, contentment, abstinence from sexual acts, spirit of sportsmanship, hardwork, humility, service and love for others. We need to realise that if we do not groom them well right now, we might be the ones at the receiving end of their actions.

Enabling environment at home

You need to make your home feel like a sanctuary and not a lion’s den. This is the only way kids will feel free to confide in you. When they know that they can talk to you, they can tell you anything. You’d be amazed at the kind of information they will give you. This will help you take proactive action to protect them. Please stop being too busy to talk to your kids. You need to know what is going on in their lives. Sometimes play games with them, go on dates with them, chat with them. In those bonding moments, you’d find out a lot.

Take your kids seriously

It is one thing to get them to the point of talking, it’s another to act on the information you have been given. Do not take what your kids confide lightly. Imagine all the possible scenarios and act. It’s not being a busy body, it’s you being proactive. It is actually better to go the extra mile than allow something bad happen and wish you took the extra mile. Remember, you will not always be with them, so act.

Be a good neighbour

Your neighbour could be at home, work, school, market or even church. So your kids are doing fine, your husband is not hitting you but you have a neighbour who is going through bad situations. You do not drink but you have a colleague who drinks on the job. What are you doing about it? By now the neighbours of that 14 year old girl would feel complicit in her death and wish they acted better. But do we have to wait for things to go bad before we feel involved or concerned? What goes around comes around and the actions of our neighbours could hurt us directly or indirectly. Therefore, show love to your neighbours. If we all became better neighbours to one another, our communities would be safer.

Are you a brother’s keeper?