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WE are appalled and outraged by the rise in anti-social behaviour among youths in Bulawayo and call on parents and guardians to take their roles seriously and stem the tide of pervasion inherent in their offspring. It is shocking that despite a surge in HIV infections in the region, youths in Bulawayo are exhibiting behaviour which can only be described as suicidal.
So-called Vuzu parties where schoolgoing children embark on booze-fuelled sex orgies with reckless abandon are now the order of the day and hardly a weekend passes without hordes of teenagers and young adults being rounded up at these parties of debauchery. We have reported on these pages numerous occasions during which arrests have been made by the police after conducting raids on Vuzu parties.
Frighteningly, the term Vuzu itself has been coined by the proponents of these shindigs to refer to a practice in which these youths compete to see who among them has sex with the highest number of partners. In most of these cases, no protection is used. Our reportage of these parties has exposed a familiar pattern.
Often, the organisers advertise their activities on social media such as WhatsApp chat groups and Instagram. A venue and cover charge is then posted online and before long, the message has spread like wildfire and by the time the weekend arrives, the party will be oversubscribed. The hosts of these parties are usually children from well-heeled families whose parents are in the Diaspora.
While they provide the venue, the cover charge is meant to cater for the copious amounts of alcohol consumed at these parties. The youths even hire kombis to ferry party-goers from a central point in the city centre to the venue — usually in the leafy suburbs of Bulawayo. A DJ is always on hand to provide entertainment while some adults are often seen patronising these parties to prey on intoxicated youths.
Hard drugs such as ecstasy and cocaine are consumed and youths often pass out after partaking of larger amounts of alcohol. Recently, we reported on a group of children from various city schools who were arrested while drinking alcohol and engaging in sex at Centenary Park.
Police arrested 32 pupils from Milton High School and Pace College during a raid at the park and they were found with alcohol, used condoms and dangerous drugs such as bronco. Another batch of 16 pupils was arrested at a house in Cowdray Park for conducting similar parties.
During the police raid in Cowdray Park, they confiscated alcoholic beverages and sex enhancing concoctions. Yesterday, we carried a story where police arrested 224 pupils who held a Vuzu party at Rest Camp on the outskirts of the city on Saturday.
Following the arrest of the children some as young as 13 and young adults aged 20, police have warned parents and guardians that they also risked being arrested for failing to take care of their children. Bulawayo Metropolitan Province police spokesperson Inspector Precious Simango said they could charge parents for negligence for failing to take care of their children in terms of the country’s laws.
She said police have noted with concern that even after cautioning and releasing children taking part in such wild parties into the custody of their parents and guardians, no desired behaviour changes have been noted.
“Now we’re going to take further action and charge them (parents) with child negligence as stipulated in the Children’s Act. It’s high time we act on parents who are failing to take care of their children,” said Insp Simango.
“We’ve been giving them warning shots and encouraging them to conscientise their children on the dangers of alcohol abuse. They must take keen interest on the whereabouts of their children.”
We agree totally with the police and call on parents to take an active role in the affairs of their children. Guardians entrusted with looking after children whose parents are abroad should carry out their supervisory roles with the utmost seriousness and dedication.
It is extremely worrying that in the age of HIV/Aids, parents are letting their children engage in dangerous activities on their watch. The HIV prevalence rate in Matabeleland South, Bulawayo and Matabeleland North stood at 21 percent, 19 percent and 18 percent respectively — the highest in the country, according to statistics released by the National Aids Council last year.
These are staggering and sobering figures which make the region a high risk zone and young people should be advised to refrain from behaviour that increases their chances of getting infected. Vuzu parties are a breeding ground for the spread of the dreaded disease and we commend the police for cracking down on them.
The greater Bulawayo community can also play its part by keeping an eye out for wayward youths.
Online Reporter