The National Family Commission (NFC) was re-launched yesterday and new Chairman Reverend Kwame Gilbert said it will seek to develop a quality of life in Guyana that promotes stability in families.
There has been a lapse in family stability throughout the nation, Gilbert said at the event, held at Cara Lodge, Quamina Street, while adding that the ability of the family to function as a formative frame for the strengthening of the society has been affected by the situation.
“We’re dealing with an undeniable reality of families that are single-parent, most of which are single mothers,” he said, while emphasising the need to protect and assist families and especially single-parent ones. “We need to create an environment where the basic needs are met,” he added, while saying that if the family as an institution is empowered then the nation is empowered.
He also emphasised the need to strengthen the role of the father, while adding that parental responsibility is imperative to the development a strong family. “The solution is to cause them [fathers] to recognise and assume a greater level of responsibility in how they participate in parenting. Some men don’t stay around, so we need to create an environment where they would,” he added.
The NFC will be working with both government and non-governmental organisations to ensure that fathers are incorporated into the parental care and child development programmes, Gilbert said.
Every child has the right to be nurtured and receive a good upbringing and the responsibility lies in the hands of both parents, he added. The NFC functions to support the efforts of parents and also to ensure that they assume their parental responsibility. “Let’s advocate an environment where assistance is extended to all families,” he said.
The commission will be the voice for the family, Gilbert also stated, while assuring that the NFC will ensure that the public is not desensitised about family-related issues.
To this end, the NFC will be monitoring and evaluating programmes in the media as a precaution to protect the family. It hopes to pursue censorship of anything that could be harmful to the family, including music, videos and advertisements.
“The media, especially through music, is eroding family values. We can see it through the escalation of violence and alcoholism,” said the chairperson of the launch Dr Vindhya Persaud. “We need to have a value system in our society. We need to create an environment where it is safe for children to grow in,” she said, while adding that the lyrics of songs that degrade women, promote drinking and other inexcusable practices contribute to the disintegration of the family as the basic institution for development.
The NFC will also be collaborating with the National Assembly and stakeholders to examine laws and ensure that they support values which a family should be built on. Amendments will be made to any legislation that would be considered harmful to the family.
Minister of Human Services Jennifer Webster urged parents to take up their responsibilities and roles. “You are the first person a child interacts with, so be a positive role-model. Teach them values, respect and responsibility. It is your responsibility to inculcate positive attitudes in your children,” she said, while inviting public cooperation to generate a better society and eradicate things that have a negative impact on the family.
