Following the death of 13-year-old Aliesha Brown, the
Principal of Muschette High School called for an end to the shift system,
which seems to suggest that it is a contributing factor to the death of Aliesha
Brown. In an article in the Observer the Principal stated that, “The system
again failed this young lady on the basis that she had to be out that early to
get to school that starts at 7:00 am. And that is a good thing. One should
always strive for punctuality. It's a good trait, it's a life skill but the
point is we are no longer living in a safe Jamaica and for us to have our
children exposed to that level of threat so early in the morning, I feel that
we have failed them.”
One of the things we ought to understand is that the shift
system in of itself is a failure to our nation’s children independent of
safety. As such, such mechanism should not be in place initially. However, on
had to understand that such system was put in place due to the lack of space available
at these institutions compared to the number of students attending.
Consequently, it would not be easy to abolish such system bearing in mind the
aforementioned reason why it was in place. One of the greatest disadvantages is
not so much that it is poses as a means of danger to students but that is
limits the amount of content that students are able to received.
I believe though, that in the case of Aliesha Brown, the
problem is not solely the shift system, but these pedophiles out there that are
preying on our children. Regardless of what system in place, whether shift or
day school, these perpetrators will find some way to attack and destroy our
children. Think of the two other bodies that was found in the Martha Brae River
some time ago, where two children who were missing (10-year-old Meleeka
Mitchell, and 12-year-old Omari Sterling). Additionally it was reported that
the female was sexually assaulted and subsequently murdered. This problem is
much bigger than merely deficiencies in the shift system.
It more so significantly relates to a deeper social context
that is predominantly becoming a plague unto our nation. It stems from a
breakdown in family structures and morality in general. Parents ought to be
more involved in their children’s lives; know their friends, know what is going
on in their lives and employ measures to adequately monitor their children.
Times are not safe anymore and as such, we encourage children to walk in groups
and never to go somewhere without telling anyone. We ought to tell them that
they are not talk to or entertain strangers. They are not too old for that. We
need to go back to the days where family values are seen as priority and are
uphold. We need to go back to the days where we embraced the ideology that it
takes a village to raise a child. Moreover, we ought to identify, locate and
eliminate the pedophiles by whatever means necessary.
