'Pens down' parties must be mature

As we await the end of school exams, the country will be abuzz with what pupils have termed "pens down" parties.

These are gatherings during which young people convene to celebrate the end of exams.

While I am not against the notion of young people having fun, let me caution that these events may be catastrophic if left unwatched.

It is during these sessions that young people become overly excited and end up indulging in drugs, alcohol and unsafe sex.

I have seen pupils partying till the morning in the name of celebrating the end of exams. What they need to know is that the aim of writing exams is not to finish but to pass.

Celebrating the end of exams does not help in any way if the results are not yet known.

It even gets worse when these young people tear their school uniform and write messages on them just to celebrate the end of the school calendar year.

As much as no one is obliged to donate anything to anyone, in this country, where poverty is rife, it would be much better to pass on the school uniform to a needy pupil than to destroy it in the name of "pens down".

Our young people must be taught to behave in a responsible manner as early as today.

Finishing exams is not victory, the real triumph is doing well in those exams. May the seed of responsibility be planted in the minds of our future leaders so that they grow up to contribute effectively to the South Africa we wish to see.

Let us create the tomorrow we want, today.

Malphia Honwane, eManyeleti