ODM Leader Raila Odinga’s wife Ida Odinga has asked the county government of Kisumu to find alternative shelter for street families in the Lakeside city.
Ida wants street urchins taken to orphanages, rehabilitation centers and children’s homes.
Speaking in Kisumu, Ida said just like other children, street urchins deserved a home, tender care, protection and formal education in society.
“We don’t want to see children who are young loitering on the streets and sniffing glue or feeding on debris. No.,” She said
“Having all children in school is a function for the society because schooling is regarded as an efficient means of training young members in the beliefs, values and behaviors of the society,” She said
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She spoke during the lighting of the Christmas tree in Kisumu.
Ida observed that training young people was the sure way of maintaining social order and cohesion in the society.
At the same time, Ida said there is a -need to deal with street families by returning them to ‘normalcy’ and to the shared values, beliefs and norms of the society.
” We have noticed a trend where strong moral ties that influenced individual behavior in the rural areas to break down in big cities such as Kisumu, Nairobi and others, where a person may feel disconnected or alienated from others and hence indulge into social deviance. This is what we must work to avert,” She advised.