When her parents confronted her about her pregnancy, the P4 girl revealed that the father was her boyfriend, Leonard Opolot, whom she had been dating since 2022. She was taken to her boyfriend's home at night, presumably to catch him off guard.
A Soroti family has married off their 14-year-old daughter, a primary four pupil at
Awoja Bridge Primary School, after discovering that she is pregnant.
The
situation came to light when her parents confronted her about her pregnancy,
and she revealed that the father was her boyfriend, Leonard Opolot, whom she
had been dating since 2022. According to reports, the primary four pupil was
taken to her boyfriend's home under the cover of night, presumably to catch him
off guard.
During an interview
with URN, the girl explained that her parents had a private meeting with her
in-laws, where they discussed her pregnancy and ultimately agreed that she
should remain with her husband. "I have hopes to go back to school with my
husband if someone is willing to help me with my education," she stated. "Both my parents and in-laws participated in the decision, leading to my current situation of living with my husband. "
Patrick Opolot, the
deputy head teacher at Awoja Bridge Primary School, expressed deep concern over
the matter. He said that the school had made efforts to encourage the girl
to return to school, but these attempts were unsuccessful. Letters were sent to
the parents urging them to reconsider their decision, but neither attended the
subsequent meeting.
"This has become a common issue in our community,
driven by parents who seek to settle matters, often in exchange for
something," Opolot lamented.
He disclosed that two children from their
school had been lost to child marriage this year alone—one in primary four and
another in primary six.
//Cue in. "you see its becoming a common thing ………….
Cue out even the boys drop and they go and marry. " //
Robert Etochu the LC1
Apuuton village chairperson, noted that he had advised the girl's parents to
report the case to the police, expressing surprise that they chose to resolve
the matter privately.
It was revealed that the young man involved had dropped
out of school and is currently 19 years old. Initially, there was an attempt to
mediate the situation after he was chased away from the girl's family home, but
the parents eventually reached a conclusion without further intervention.
Despite follow-up visits from journalists, both sets of parents declined to
comment, stating that they had resolved the issue and had no ongoing
disagreements, as the girl was now living with her husband. This case highlights ongoing challenges related to child marriage and the
pressures faced by families in certain communities.
Moris OKwi
Freelancer