adminEmmanuel Kafe
AS most tertiary institutions open this month, a sizeable number of students go back to wrap up their academic pursuits while others begin a new chapter.
But there is a worrying trend at these institutions of higher learning, which parents and guardians must be wary of — an increase in the number of suicide cases.
University students, whose only concern should be excelling in their academic studies, are taking their own lives. Disturbingly, no one seems to know why.
But apart from academic pressure, matters of the heart are complex and can take a huge toll on a student’s mental faculties. It can be even worse if they are coupled with financial troubles, the impact can be catastrophic.
Suicides are emerging as one of the biggest causes of death for students at tertiary institutions in Zimbabwe and these usually occur during examination time. Screaming headlines of students ending their lives owing to different reasons have become a staple.
Although tertiary institutions were not forthcoming with statistics on suicide deaths among students, investigations by The Sunday Mail Society revealed disturbing trends.
Last year alone, five of the more than 10 university students who died were suspected to have committed suicide. One of the latest students to commit suicide is Misheck Siwela, a second-year actuarial science student.
The 21-year-old promising actuarial scientist’s lifeless body was found hanging from trusses of his family’s Nketa home in Bulawayo. He did not leave a suicide note and his family was left puzzled as he had not shown any signs of depression.
Siwela committed suicide as he was preparing for his end of semester examinations.
In another case of suspected suicide, Blessing Mangena, a first-year statistics student, was crushed by a train in November last year. This was after she had been impregnated by a man who was not her boyfriend.
Two months earlier, the body of an unnamed second-year finance student had been found hanging in a hostel at the National University of Science of Technology (NUST). The student is suspected to have committed suicide, but just like Siwela, he did not leave any clues on why he had taken his own life.
At Midlands State University (MSU), one of the largest tertiary institutions in the country, a number of students have committed suicide in recent times. One of the students who died recently was Walter Temera, who took his own life in November last year after finding a lecturer in bed with his girlfriend. In another case, a second year student at the same university was in September last year found hanging in his hostel in another suspected case of suicide. Students who had lived with him said he never showed any signs of distress.
Several students from the institution have committed suicide since then, with more cases coming from colleges and polytechnics around the country.
Health professionals say depression and anxiety have become increasingly prevalent in today’s college students, with mental health issues being the biggest barriers to doing well in school. The development has left experts calling for strong counselling programmes to assist troubled students as they fear the trend might go down to secondary and primary institutions.
What could possibly be the reason behind the increased cases of suicides in tertiary institutions?
A psychiatrist, Bernard Muroyiwa, said the biggest cause of suicide is depression, which is characterised by a low mood, low energy, low interest, low concentration and repeated thoughts of death. He said university students are always under pressure and their institutions should always ensure they access psycho-social services.
“Suicide is associated with self-guilt, worthlessness and hopelessness. When one reaches hopelessness, suicide is seen as a way to escape a situation,” said Muroyiwa.
The psychiatrist attributed the suicide cases to the lack of psychological support in most universities, adding that the ability to recognise stress, anxiety, depression, drug and alcohol abuse is often ignored.
“The only viable solution is to have courses taught to every student and allow, where possible, students to defer studies and focus on their health without losing their place at school,” he explained. Social analysts believe there is a solution to every problem and students should consider their loved ones before they commit these selfish acts.
“Counselling is very powerful. The country is going through a lot at the moment and many people are faced with different challenges. Our children should understand that committing suicide is mean and selfish. Their parents work hard to give them a better life and they cut it short just like that,” said Emilda Mbiriri, a social worker at a local old people’s home in Harare.
She added that the majority of suicides and suicide attempts occur among students who suffer from depression, high-stress levels, guilt about mistakes made, family issues, failure and general lack of belonging to a particular society.
Some of the students who commit suicide would have succumbed to pressure to impress, which is sometimes beyond their capacity, psychologists say. Police spokesperson, Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said they might not have statistics of suicides from individual tertiary institutions but confirmed that the suicide cases are rising countrywide.
Early this year, disturbing data from the police showed that a total of 129 suicide cases were recorded between January and March 2019, compared to 91 reported in the same period last year, which shows a 42 percent increase.
The rising number of suicides among students and university graduates is turning the spotlight onto the role of universities in supporting vulnerable students and raising awareness around mental health issues.
Parents have called on tertiary institutions to do more to deal with depression among students in order to curb the rising cases of suicides.
Last year, Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Minister Amon Murwira said Government was worried about the rise of suicide cases at universities.
He said they were looking into improving psychological support at the institutions. He was further quoted saying his ministry would investigate the cause of mental health issues, which he said were the leading cause of suicides.
Health experts say the first step to avert suicides is tackling stigma and social exclusion, followed by focusing on empowerment and building resilience as well as nurturing problem-solving skills among students,. They also recommend providing quality mental health care for students.
Online Reporter
Bongani Ndlovu