Florence Nakiwala Kinyingi, the State Minister for Youth and Children Affairs has appointed child rapper Patrick Senyonjo aka Fresh Kid the ambassador of a new campaign aimed at taking children off the streets.
Fresh Kid together with Kampala Parent’s head boy and head girl were unveiled on Friday at Kampala Parents School, during the swearing in ceremony of the school’s new pupil’s leaders.
In her speech, Nakiwala claimed that she selected the trio from Kampala Parents, and seven others (a total of 10), to encourage their peers who were taken off the streets never to go back.
She said that they have so far set up seven homes around the country to house these street children, and so far over 700 children have been removed from the street of Kampala.
And since children sometimes listen to their peers, it’s the reason why Nakawala is planning to use Fresh Kid and his team to offer counselling, guidance and encouragement to these children who have been taken from streets.
Fresh Kid and his team will be tasked with a responsibility of fighting for their peers’ rights, and also lead campaigns that are aimed at soliciting things which can be of importance to these children who are living in homes.
“These children are always happy to receive anything from anyone. Though recently we passed a law banning people from giving things to street children, but it doesn’t mean to stop people from giving stuffs to these children. We encourage people to do the giving through the right procedures,” she said.
Nakiwala also noted that Fresh Kid and the selected team will be taken to the Prime Minister to be given tools and power of advocacy officially.
Rajiv Ruparelia, one of the Directors of Kampala Parents also advised children to not take any chance given to them for granted, but rather use it and nature it into something of a much more great importance.
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