COMRADES SILENT CRY TO REACH PARENTS

Robin

Dedicated to all parents with their sons and daughters in universities.

	Greetings dad and mum. Receive this letter written  out of my two year experience in campus. I have addressed the reasons why you have heard many university students indulging in many immoral activities.

	For long time now starvation, suicides, drug abuse, theft cases, sexual immorality and campus marriage have become a normal story about most universities in Kenya. However, these problems have not been addressed seriously resulting to a generation that is very immoral. I have addressed one major factor that I have seen to be the cause of all the above stated and more problems among university students.

	The factor addressed here is how parents failure to be responsible has resulted to problems among students in universities. Transition from secondary school to university have always come with psychological stress. Parents have always reduced or even stopped totally their provision and support to their children. However, this is the most time that their sons and daughters need them due to change in environment. The locality, friends, teachers, weather, among other factors have changed. They are no longer with their parents. Many parents abandon all their responsibilities of paying the school fees,accommodation fees, food and other basic requirements of their beloved sons and daughters. Some parents who are good enough continue  paying the school fees without bothering themselves about the accommodation and upkeep of their children. Very few parents continue supporting their children fully, big up to them. Some parents have always thought that the government will take up all their responsibilities to pay school fees, accomodation costs and upkeep. What parents do not understand is that even the HELB loan given by the government is not enough for upkeep the whole semester. 

	Students need school fees, hostel fees/ rent, food and upkeep. The government pays only part of tuition fees,the rest is to be paid by the parents. The university does not offer free accommodation, residential students have to pay for hostels, non-residential students needs to pay rent for the apartments around the institution. Food at the cafeteria is not offered for free, students have to pay before eating. Non-resident students need food to prepare at their apartments, the food is purchased. There are always assignments and quizzes to be done on fulscaps and some are to be printed, all at a cost. Sometimes we need some materials for our academics,all at a cost; science students need laboratory practical manuals, SMP mathematical tables, laboratory coats, etc.

	To cope with this change, students opt to change. Demands are unlimited but resources are limited due to lack of financial support of their parents. Most students have developed mechanisms to cope with starvation. Most of them can only afford one meal per day, infact sometimes non-resident students survives with 'KDF' and water alone. Some are forced to fasting which I have always referred to hunger strike. This has had effects on the studies of students and even sometimes have resulted to health complications like ulcers. Most ladies have been forced to campus marriage, this a semester-long contract marriage that comrades engage in to get accommodation and other basic needs they can not afford, funny enough they divorce at the end of the semester. Some young ladies decide to 'sell ' their bodies for cash atleast to cater for their expenses. Most students who were not using drugs are forced to drug abuse to cope with psychological stress due to lack of money. Few of them are forced to involve in theft cases. Most of these activities have become addictive to your sons and daughters and continues with this habit even after coming out of campus. Few of comrades are unable to cope with the situation and end up commiting suicide. Many people judge them harshly without considering what could have forced them to such a point of taking away their lives.

	My humble request to all parents to take up their responsibilities seriously in order to ensure good morals of this generation and even generations to come. We shall be assured of peace and security since our youths will not involve in crime activities.

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