ADAPT worried of domestic violence and maintenance claims

The number of child maintenance cases in Alex is on the increase due to gender-based violence which is causing parents to separate or get divorced.

This according to NPO Agisanang Domestic Abuse Prevention and Training (Adapt) which attends to more than 130 child maintenance cases monthly. This increase prompted the organisation to conduct a family indaba at Alex Clinic to enable residents to seek solutions to their problems.

Adapt’s Peter Mahani said the indaba was part of a community outreach programme to build family unity which is in the best interests of children.

“Many families lack the parenting and communication skills essential for nurturing children,” he said.

“They vent their frustration and anger on each other, resulting in violence in front of the children and are unaware of its impact on their emotional and psychological state.

“The children adopt similar patterns in relationships in their own households when they are older, making them dysfunctional parents.”

Mahani’s colleague, Catherine Mochaki said parents entering into maintenance agreements further strained the relationship. She said some women seek revenge on their partners by denying them access to their children, despite visitation arrangements in the maintenance agreement.

Mochaki added that others used protection orders to deny fathers access to their children.

“Often, this results in children replacing the absent fathers with outsiders who give them wrong advice that gets them into trouble,” she warned.

She advised that a maintenance agreement was the responsibility of both parents and was important to ensure the child’s health, education and living needs. Mochaki added that maintenance was a legal obligation and defaulting could lead to imprisonment, blacklisting, or sale of one’s assets or property to recover outstanding claims.