The day kicked off with a morning march of about 2km, in the vicinity of Crystal Park Primary School, which acted as host for the day’s events.
The march was meant to raise awareness of drug abuse and domestic issues in the area.
“According to our statistics here at the victim empowerment centre (VEC), at the Crystal Park Police Station, one of the main social problems in this area is uncontrollable children, which means there’s a huge problem with parent-child relationships, especially regarding teenagers,” said Jath van der Westhuizen, senior social worker of iThemba.
“We decided to have this event today to make the public more aware of parent-child relations and how important it is for parents to play an active part in children’s lives, but also for the children to listen to their parents and to keep the communication lines open.”
After the march everyone gathered inside the school hall, where various speakers addressed the crowd, which included a large number of primary school and pre-school pupils.
The speakers included Reginald Ngwenya (programme director and president of Crystal Park Unity Club), Clr Stefanie Kruger (Ward 24), Tumelo Mkhonto, Jath van der Westhuizen, Nelson “Teenage” Dladla (former Kaizer Chiefs soccer star), Lieut Col Puleng Motaung (Crystal Park station commander), Herbert Modupi and Winnie Mona (iThemba).
Among the themes discussed were the history of Youth Day and current youth unemployment, although the emphasis was put on education and sport for the youth and their avoidance of drugs and crime.
After the speakers had finished, the younger children were led to the school’s sport fields, where a large team of coaches awaited them, ready to involve them in some sports and games.
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