“Dropouts have negative influence on school going youths”

“Dropouts could have a negative influence on youths who still go to school. My advice to the youths is to choose their friends wisely. Know who you are hanging with,” said Inspector Humphrey Naarden, head of the Public Relations Office of the Police Force Suriname (KPS). The inspector who shared this clear message in the first week of the new school year pointed out that throughout the years it has been proven that dropouts often drag school going youths along in their activities. The activities could vary from selling and using drugs to committing a crime. There are also cases where youths roam the streets of the inner city to start trouble.

Naarden also pointed out that sometimes schools close early and that the youths head to the city. But he does not want to refer to these students as street youths. The first day of school was a good example of that. On October 1 many youths assembled in the city because the schools had closed early. “On such a day the police beefs up surveillance and takes action when and where it becomes necessary. “Youths who still attend classes at school must become more serious. It makes no difference if they are enrolled at a new school or if they are in the next grade. I myself am the father of a teenager so I know these things. School going youths must learn to be more serious. They must concentrate on their education and they must also know what they want to achieve in life,” said Naarden.