KUALA LUMPUR: Parents should emphasise discipline, monitoring and communication in shaping their children’s personal and social values, says Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri (pic).
The Women, Family and Community Development Minister said parents need to strengthen family values through two-way communication with their children.
Children should be disciplined through a balanced and loving approach, as love and attention in a family can reduce the tendency for teenagers to look for attention outside, she added.
“Everything begins at home. If parents themselves don’t teach their children, then that’s the root of the problem.
“Children today are exposed to all sorts of gadgets.
“We cannot leave them alone without guidance – if we do, it will result in problems at schools,” she said after attending a Bernama TV podcast at the grounds of the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur along with Bernama chief executive officer Datin Paduka Nur-ul Afida Kamaludin.
Nancy said unsupervised exposure to various online materials has caused some children and teenagers to think that immoral acts are normal.
She also said her ministry has prepared the KafeTEEN Teenager Centre (KafeTEEN) as a safe place for students during school hours to carry out beneficial activities such as debates, self-development and entrepreneurial programmes.
Nancy added that her ministry offers out-of-school counselling for teenagers or students involved in immoral activities as a rehabilitation measure.
Such services offer a safe haven for teenagers to voice out their issues without worrying about being stigmatised by people around them, Nancy said.
“We have met 13-year-olds who admitted to having sexual relations. So, we help them through open counselling (without stigma), allowing them to talk in a safe environment,” she added.
In a related development, Nancy said the National Family Month in November will focus on the importance of active participation by parents in building good relationships with children.
Nancy said the main event will take place in Putrajaya on Nov 8 and 9, with various interactive activities aimed at fostering closer ties between parents and children in addition to being a platform to strengthen the family unit.
