Sinazongwe fights early marriages
SINAZONGWE District Commissioner Sheena Muleya has warned parents to desist from marrying off their school going girls whenever they have financial pressure.
Ms Muleya told the Daily Nation that a district multi-sectoral team had been assembled to deal with early marriages.
She said that the district had also engaged the traditional leadership in Chief Mweemba and Chief Sinazongwe to help in sensitising their subjects on the issue.
Ms Muleya said that girl child was a treasure to the Government and as such, it would not spare any parent or guardian who would be found marrying off underage girls.
"I want to urge the people of Sinazongwe community especially the headmen from the two chiefdoms to look after the girl child.
"As a district, we are championing the call that the two chiefdoms should be with government in the fight against unwanted pregnancies and early marriages," the DC said.
Ms Muleya stressed that Government would not hesitate to take stiff punishment on erring parents or guardians because they were destroying the future of the girls.
"If you as a parent have no money to take care of the children, the cooperating partners are willing to sponsor girls to pursue their education...so please don't think you are alone, government is there to sustain or come in where you are not able.
"As a District we have taken it as a multi-sectoral approach and when we catch up with a parent marrying off a girl child or an underage child, the police will take action and every department will know about it because we are working as one team," she said.
The DC urged parents to also encourage their girl children to ensure they were in school all the time.