Tomorrow, Sunday 21st June, the world will celebrate Father’s Day; but why should fathers who were/are derelict in their responsibilities to their offspring, leaving all the care and worry to overwhelmed mothers, be felicitated on a day specially selected to honour fathers? Society is plagued with single mothers who have been abandoned by their spouses and/or the fathers of their children. Many times the sheer weight of these responsibilities, especially if there is no support system, has resulted in some mothers making unfortunate decisions, often with tragic consequences.
Recently a video of a newborn baby girl left abandoned and eaten alive by ants went viral on social media sites. Over the years, many such horrific incidents have surfaced, revealing the cruel acts of desperation of some mothers left in a quandary, with a baby and/or children to support, with absolutely no support systems.

Several times children left alone while their mothers sought employment to provide for their needs were burnt to death, or starved, or were abused by predators, while uncaring members of the community treat the impoverished and vulnerable family with scorn.

Delinquent fathers often never face the brunt of the dereliction of their responsibilities to their offspring – not even in the courts. The consequences of these fathers absconding from their parental duties are often dire and can fill volumes; but there are sometimes such wonderful stories of the abandoned children growing up to become super-achievers. Even if they do not achieve to the optimum levels of their inherent potential because of a lack of money and opportunities, just to have her child grow up as a responsible and decent member of society is a commendable achievement for any single mother.
Then there are the mothers who, although in a destructive relationship or marriage and cannot exit their desperate circumstances for some reason or another, strive with everything within their power to provide for their children all their needs, ensuring they are imbued with the requisite values and moral fortitude to become decent, responsible and law-abiding citizens. Kudos to these mothers who may not be appreciated for their lifelong sacrifices and unrelenting efforts to achieve for their children the kind of lifestyles they could not aspire for themselves.

To mothers who have striven single-handedly to bring up their children to be decent and humane citizens of the land, investing in them moral compasses that enable them to withstand with fortitude and dignity travails they endure in life, and the strength of character to rise above their circumstances, without intruding on the rights of anyone, to carve a niche of success whereby they can rise above all societal frays in their self-created world and boundaries, the Guyana Chronicle says, “Happy Father’s Day, Mom!”