Thika West Children Officer, Lina Mwangi, has advised residents against supporting street children in Thika town directly through food, clothes and other gift donations.
Speaking at Kianjau Primary School on Monday, April 28, Mwangi noted that feeding these children would entice more children from disadvantaged homes to take to the streets.
According to the officer, these cases were mostly prominent during closures when these children did not have the safety net of schools.
"As part of the security and child protection team, we are requesting members of the public not to feed children in the streets of Thika town," she stated.
Instead of issuing the donations directly to the children, she urged the well-wishers to redirect their charitable efforts through proper channels.
These, she stated, included collaborations with government agencies, town managers, and children's homes to ensure the aid was delivered appropriately.
"If anybody feels like they should be charitable to children in Thika town, they pass through the sub-county children's office, the DCC's office, the sub-county administrator and the town manager," Mwangi clarified.
Aside from this worrying trend, Mwangi also highlighted the issue of child labour and exploitation, which is also often rampant during the school holidays.
She warned against the vice where many children in the region are forced to take on odd jobs in order to contribute to their families' income, terming it a form of child abuse.
The children's officer was speaking at a non-governmental organisation (NGO) event offering mentorship and counselling services to over 300 children from the Kiandutu slums.
An officer from the NGO backed her remarks and stated that the children have been educated about their rights and encouraged to report any form of abuse to the relevant authorities.
The programme also received a boost from Thika Town MP Alice Ng'ang’a, who provided foodstuffs for the children participating.
