Elders to curse men who defile and impregnate teenage girls

Modern lifestyles and technology are partly to blame for increased cases of teenage pregnancy, the Mijikenda Kaya Elders Association has said.

Chairman Mwinyi Mwalimu has since cautioned the county against banning discos in its war against early pregnancies.

“Proper research should be carried out and clear ways of addressing this problem devised,” said Mr Mwalimu, who spoke at Magarini Cultural Centre in Gongoni on Monday.

He added: “We welcome efforts by the county to fight teenage pregnancies. However, some of the activities targeted for banning have been with us even before this problem emerged.”

A recent Government report shows at least 17,000 teenagers in the county get pregnant every year.

Concerns by Kaya elders also came on the backdrop of revelations that Malindi Law Courts alone handles 30 defilement cases every month.

Another elder, Stanley Kenga from Ribe, said they would curse those defiling underage girls. “Cases of teenage pregnancies have reached alarming levels and we are warning perpetrators. We shall curse them,” he said.