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Dar sex den stuns MPs
2005-07-26 08:19:07
By Judica Tarimo, Dodoma
Worried of an impending disaster, MPs yesterday voiced their concern over rampant drug trafficking, sexual exploitation and prostitution involving smalls boys and girls at Uwanja wa Fisi in Dar es Salaam.
They called for immediate government intervention.
’’This is very serious. The boys and girls are leading a desperate and shameful life. We advise the government to act,’’ said the Parliamentary Committee on Social Development in its report.
The committee was reacting to the budget estimates of the Ministry of Labour, Youth Development and Sport.
Reading the report, Haroub Masudi said young girls, most of them orphans and street children, were being raped and forced into the worst form of child labour namely commercial sex.
He said that the girls gave birth to babies who also ended up becoming street children. The committee puts the number to 100, of new born infants at Uwanja wa Fisi.
’’The committee recommends special centres where the newly born babies would get care and support, to protect them from falling into the same vicious life,’’ said Masudi.
The committee called on the government to develop practical and implementable strategies to withdraw youth from the worst forms of child labour and create jobs for them.
’’Remedial projects should not be confined to Dar es Salaam alone,’’ said committee.
In his contribution, Benedict Mtungirehi (Kyerwa, TLP) blasted the government for ’unrealistic and meager’ budgetary allocations for youth development projects.
’’This is a big joke, to say the least…the ministry, and the government in particular is not serious. What can 1.1bn/- only allocated for youth development do?’’ the legislator queried.
The MP faulted the ministry, for outlining youth strategies but failing to post labour experts to rural areas to study and get a true picture on the problem of unemployment.
Talala Mbise (Arumeru-North, CCM) said the youth development budget was very small, and did not match with the huge unemployment problem.
’’We have to double the funding. Our primary focus should be on rural youth,’’ he said, adding: ’’We have to help these potential time-bomb social groups.’’
Lydia Boma (Special Seats-Mtwara, CCM) told the government to stop doing paper work and act on the plight of the youth who constitute 40 per cent of the country’s estimated 35 million people.
’’We have to stop paying lip service to the young. If the
government is too busy, let me help distribute the money in my constituency. Someone has to do the job, the MP said, as House members burst into laughter.
Athuman Janguo (Kisarawe, CCM), Magreth Mkanga (Special Seat) and Mohamed Msanga (Singida-South -CCM) told the government to establish effective youth and disabled programmes.
’’I haven’t seen any productive efforts to support disabled and old persons in terms of soft loans and other development packages,” said Janguo.
Mkanga also complained that competent disabled persons graduating from universities were being sidelined in the labour market.
She wondered why the government was dilly-dallying in ratifying the international agreement on the protection of disabled rights.
’’The policy governing the aged is already in place…but the government has done nothing to educate the public about it,’’ said Msanga.
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