MP begs Parly to stop ‘vuzu parties’

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THE rise in the number of “vuzu parties”, where youths engage in sex and abuse alcohol and drugs, became the centre of discussion in the National Assembly on Thursday during debate on a motion on the Presidential Speech.

THE rise in the number of “vuzu parties”, where youths engage in sex and abuse alcohol and drugs, became the centre of discussion in the National Assembly on Thursday during debate on a motion on the Presidential Speech.

by VENERANDA LANGA

Lobengula MP Maideyi Mpala said it was now imperative for the Health and Education ministries to come up with behavioural change interventions to stop the parties.

She said the bad behaviour by the youths could have been fuelled by the migration of many parents in Bulawayo to the Diaspora in search of greener pastures.

“The migration of parents to greener pastures is also linked to the increase in school dropouts and teen pregnancies,” Mpala said.

“Of late, there has been the mushrooming of the teen vuzu parties being held by these children, which is currently the worst ill affecting them. This has led to a further drop in the pass rate in the province (Bulawayo).”

The MP said behaviour change education was necessary to stop schoolchildren from engaging in the wild parties

“I appeal to the Minister of Health and Child Care to partner with the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education to give behaviour change education in high-density community schools. A policy must be put in place and implemented at all our schools,” she said . “Programmes to influence healthy behaviour, including health promotion and education programmes, and interventions go a long way in benefiting schoolchildren and communities.”

She was hopeful the Children’s Amendment Bill, to be brought before Parliament soon, would address the issue.

Founder of non-governmental organisation Culture Shock and life skills coach Nqobile Munzara said there was need for parents to engage teens about social challenges they encountered daily in order to curb peer pressure that forced them to do unacceptable things.

Munzara said pornography was one of the factors influencing bad behaviour on youths.

She said in Zimbabwe, there are over 80 000 requests for pornography between 6am and 1pm daily.

“The voice of pornography will tell your teen that sex orgies, group sex and bestiality, as portrayed in pornographic videos and pictures are all normal forms of sexual intimacy, and this will be received by a brain that does not know how to fully process the effects of such images and resultant thoughts and feelings,” Munzara said.

It has been reported that 224 teenagers, some as young as 13, have so far been arrested in Bulawayo at vuzu parties.