JUVENILE DELINQUENCY

INTRODUCTION
Juvenile delinquency refers t the law-violating behaviour of persons, legally defined as persons. Legally, juvenile delinquency encompasses two distinct types of behaviour. These are criminal activities committed by youths (robbery, cultism, murder, examination malpractice, rape) and activities prohibited to children, such as truancy, escape from home; curfew violations or incorrigibility also known as status offences. As a legal concept, the definition of Juvenile delinquency varies over time in different nations.

THE EXTENT OF DELIQUENCY
Juvenile delinquency is a major social problem in our society today. Using EdoState as a pointer, the issue of juvenile delinquency is so alarming that the Federal Ministry of Education published the state as harboring the highest cases of examination mal-practice, in the Vanguard Newspapers of March 1st 2007. However, it is impossible to calculate the extent of the problem accurately in the entire Nigerian society, but research studies indicate that more than 90% of the Nigeria Juvenile sometime during their minority committed acts for which they could be adjudicated delinquent. So a large proportion of Juvenile delinquent acts are undetected or unreported and are hidden from public view.

CAUSES OF DELINQUENCY
Many theories have been developed to explain juvenile delinquency. These theories generally have taken one of the three major approaches. The biological approach attempts to explain why individuals become delinquent by referring to body type or physical dysfunction. The psychological approach focuses on the development of mental dysfunction and learning on behavioural patterns. The sociological approach concentrates on the influences in the social environment that shape the individual’s behaviour.

However, popular ideas about the causes of juvenile delinquency emphasize the social environment. Thus, unstable family life, drug abuse, failure to achieve academic excellence, viewing horror and amorous home video film clips; weakening of religious bonds-emphasis on materialism instead of state of holiness, youth inferiority complex and sibling influence. All these, have bad support, as explanation for delinquency. It may interest us to know that it appears that one or more of these factors may contribute to delinquency, but none stands alone as a primary cause.


SOLUTION

The solution to the problem of juvenile delinquency is multidimensional. Therefore, it would naturally follow that many aspects to the cure of this social problem will emanate. Four major areas (family, church, Government and Nature/Nurture) will be briefly analyzed below to give adequate explanation to the issue.

THE FAMILY
Without mincing words, it should be noted that parents are the victim of unwholesome social circumstances. Most of them are frequently unable to control the demoralizing conditions to which their children are exposed and bever fully dominate the child’s volitional life. Yet while the entire burden of blame should not be placed on the shoulders of parents, regardless of therse conditions, parents should be aware of, and accept their vitally important measure of responsibility. They should not relax in their effort to counsel their children towards realistic goals as against many cases, where some parents do pamper their children to be wayward. Imagine parents advising their children to be “rugged” as the means to an end in Nigeria or the hush-hush movement to seek greener pasture abroad especially among the girls.

So, parents should display adequate love so that they can communicate well with their children. This is vital for the child’s happiness and social adjustment.

THE CHURCH
Churches in our communities are making a major contribution to counteract delinquency. They have, and will continue to be a major source of contribution to the general social welfare. However, the activities of some church leaders need to be curtailed or re-evaluated by their faithful. Think of the idea of preaching materialism instead of eternity and incessant collections of all sorts of levies to the embarrassment of the worshippers. All these do not allow our juveniles to adjust well in the society.

THE GOVERNMENT
Although, there are social centres for educating youths against juvenile delinquency, like the youth centre along Akpapava street, Benin City, much need to be done by government.

The government agencies such as the police force need to be alive to their responsibility. Many juveniles with criminal cases are granted bail without precautions as a result of bribery. Many cultists especially from influential homes benefit from this unwholesome act of the police.

Government should create jobs for the idle youths. Many juveniles go into crime as a result of having nothing to occupy them. Graduates should be occupied with jobs otherwise their frustration will further compound the depression of the younger youths, who may thereby take to crime.

NATURE/NURTURE CONTROVERSY
The nature vs. nurture debate takes on a new identity when dealing directly with treating or rehabilitating juvenile delinquents. The debate on this issue is between sickness and sin. Is juvenile delinquency the result of an inborn sickness (nature) or is it the result of bad child up brings by the parents and child (Nurture)? Those in favour of delinquency being a sickness are looking up to science to find a medical cure or some genetic link that can be altered to keep the child from ever becoming delinquent.

CONCLUSION
The problem of juvenile delinquency is unprecedented in the society, hence the stakeholders should out all hands on deck to check the menace, otherwise, the society stands the risk of great catstrophy in the near future in the hands of maladjusted youths.