Minister responsible for youth and sports, Neville Wisdom, said on Monday that after receiving some “alarming and challenging reports” that young people are being preyed upon by some adults involved in youth-related programmes, his ministry is taking some steps to ensure that these programmes are being properly monitored.
Minister Wisdom, who was speaking at a press conference in Freeport, said this problem has been overlooked for too long.
“The chairman of the Youth Advisory Council had brought [it] to our attention and the publicﾒs attention couple years ago, but no one was really listening,” Minister Wisdom told reporters.
“ﾅHer council kept preaching about it. She said that there were problems firstly with lesbian gangs in schools, and now weﾒre finding that that has spilled over into Grand Bahama. Weﾒve found that there were these constant accusations involving older people preying on young people.”
Minister Wisdom said the situation raises the question as to whether the age of consent for sex is at an acceptable level or whether that needs to be looked at again. He said both young boys and young girls are susceptible to these attacks from adults.
“Young people generally are in danger because they are being preyed on by older people. One need just open [oneﾒs] eyes and visit some of the facilities around in this country and see what is going on, and we need to aggressively approach it,” he said.
Minister Wisdom, who was scheduled to meet with Grand Bahama police to discuss concerns, said he plans to forward all reports to the relevant authorities.
Meanwhile, Minister Wisdom said he would like to initiate a training programme in Grand Bahama and New Providence starting the first week of June for persons wanting to operate summer programmes.
“It is going to be extremely important during this summer, and indeed on the way ahead, that there is a careful monitoring and auditing of all programmes that involve young people,” he said.
“This minister is interested in ensuring the safety of our children and that means that we as best we can, would have to check out persons involved with young people that they are worthy of being called and participating as youth leaders, as coaches, as sports leaders.”
He asked the organisers of youth programmes to register with his ministry so that those programmes could be closely monitored and parents would know which ones are registered.
By: Courtnee Romer, The Bahama Journal
