Cape Town - A disturbing picture of a Grade 3 learner’s answer sheet from a primary school in the Metro South district has sent shock waves across community groups after the learner said he wants to be a gangster when he grows up.
The question in the activity read: “Write a personal narration of five sentences about what you want to do one day and why you want to do it.”
The learner wrote: “One day I am going to be a gangster and hold a gun in my hand. I am going to be a gangster and smuggle guns in my house.”
Spokesperson for the Western Cape Education Department (WCED), Bronagh Hammond, said they are not exposing the name of the school to protect the child.
“I can sadly confirm that this did come from one of our primary schools in response to a question during class.
“There may still be hope for the child concerned and the relevant officials notified in terms of interventions.
“The individual circumstances will be investigated.
“It is heartbreaking to see that such a young learner could aspire to something like this.
“Often children are influenced by the home environment and family, friends and community in which they live. As a department, we can only hope to instil confidence, hope and good values so that our learners can aspire to become productive, law-abiding citizens.
“We of course cannot do it alone. Parents have a major role to play in shaping their child’s personality, character, habits, and emotional development. However, if the parents are not present, uninterested, abusive or lead negatively by example, this can have a negative effect on children,” Hammond said.
A former high-ranking gangster who killed his twin brother, Pastor Leon Jacobs, said that to help the learner, the root of the issue needs to be identified.
“What draws children to the system (gangsterism) is the attention they get from the street, which is supposed to come from a biological parent, now that child feels obligated towards the streets.
“The first people to target him are the local gang in his community.
“Intervention needs to be held where the learner should be taken to the cells or Bosasa Youth Development Centre so that he can see gangsterism is not child’s play, it is serious business and hopefully make a turn around.”
Abie Isaacs, chairperson of the Cape Flats Safety Forum added: “Due to socio economic challenges faced by our communities, unemployment, poverty, broken families and sense of belonging and no good role models in our communities, kids aspire to become gangsters as they see money, flashy cars and nice clothes and as per their indoctrination by gang leaders, ‘we will pay you if you become a hitmen’.
They also telling our minors they can’t be incarcerated only to find out when these kids gets incarcerated then they realise what they have put themselves in as then it’s only the mothers that needs to act swiftly when their kids get incarcerated and the very gang leader is nowhere to be found.”
Cape Argus