Matriculants urged to make use of counselling line
The Minister of Social Development, Ms Bathabile Dlamini, says her department has opened up its Gender-Based Violence Command Centre to matriculants who will receive matric examination results tomorrow, 31 December. She has urged matriculants to make use of the Command Centre to seek counselling support from trained social workers on the release of the results.
"Many of our young people find it difficult to cope with disappointing results from their matric examinations. Some turn to alcohol and drugs to help them cope, whilst others start behaving uncharacteristically and become suicidal. So we urge our young people to call the Command Centre if they feel as if the examination outcomes are unbearable instead of turning to alcohol and drugs," said Minister Dlamini.
The Minister has also appealed to parents to look out for signs of depression on their children so that interventions can be sought early to help the youngsters deal with the outcome of examination results.
Signs of depression include feelings of helplessness and hopelessness, loss of interest in daily activities, appetite or weight changes, sleep changes, anger or irritability, loss of energy, self-loathing and reckless behavior. Parents can also call the Command Centre if they are unsure of the meaning of any change in behaviour from their children.
The Minister has also warned matriculants about using alcohol and drugs to celebrate passing their exams. "We know that some young people drink alcohol to celebrate passing their matric exams, sometimes with permission from their parents. We condemn this in the strongest possible terms because a night out celebrating can go horribly wrong when young people behave irresponsibly as a result of alcohol and drugs," explained Minister Dlamini.
The Command Centre can be reached toll-free on 0800 428 428. Callers can also request a social worker from the Command Centre to contact them by dialling *120*7867# (free) from any cell phone.
Young people can call the Command Centre as often as they need to.
Media enquiries can be forwarded to:
Ms Lumka Oliphant
Cell: 083 484 8067
E-mail: lumkao@dsd.gov.za
