BUTTERWORTH – When it comes to gangsterism and involvement with drugs, Indian secondary school students are considered to be at a substantially higher risk of falling into the trap than their peers.
The role of parents is vital to discipline and prevent their children from falling prey to this scourge, safeguarding the image of the community.
A high percentage of Indian students who succumb to such social ills is from the B40 group, including those from families living in slums.
They need to be guided so that they can pursue their higher education and start a career, ensuring they have a decent life.
The Malaysian Indian Youth Development Foundation’s (MIYDF) Penang chairman, N. Kesavan, said the issue is serious and needs to be addressed before it gets out of hand.
“Our students easily fall prey to gangsterism and drugs, because of their family background. They are either from broken families or have working parents who spend no time with the children.
“It is nothing new. The issue has existed for a long time. The foundation is taking steps to address the problem aggressively, to prevent them from becoming criminals,” he said.
Kesavan was speaking at a seminar titled ”Fight Against Crime”, jointly organised by the Malaysian Indian Transformation Unit, which is under the Prime Minister’s Department, and MIYDF.
A total of 550 secondary school and college students attended the two-day event at a hotel in Seberang Jaya.
A similar event was held on the island last weekend, attended by 250 students.
“We linked all the students in a chat group, and we advised them to talk to us about their problems. We promised to find a solution to their predicaments,” Kesavan said.
“This is an awareness programme, and our next event will be an empowerment programme to guide them in higher education and help them find career prospects.”
MIYDF coordinator S. Muthurani said the issue is serious, with Indian students easily persuaded into joining gangs or getting into drugs due to a lack of parental love and proper guidance.
“We have been to many secondary schools. We talked to the counselling teachers in the schools to identify the problematic students and their background.”
Muthurani cited a case where a 16-year-old student was harassed by a gang for six months, and he dared not discuss the matter with his parents.
“We feel that parents need to talk to and have quality time with their children if they are interested in shaping their children’s future,” added Muthurani. – The Vibes, April 18, 2021
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