30 C
Kota Kinabalu
Selasa, November 5, 2024
ADVERTISEMENTspot_img

Like Mothers, presence of Fathers are equally important: James

Dr Jeremiah Daniel, who represented James during the event on Sunday, cutting the ceremony cake with the organizers.


KOTA KINABALU: The involvement of fathers since the beginning, from the birth of a child, is important for gender equality, says Minister of Community Development and People’s Well-being (KPMKR), Datuk James Bin Ratib.


“Studies show that fathers who take at least two weeks of parental leave are more likely to contribute to childcare duties long after the leave is over.


“With paternity leave, time studies show that the amount of household work fathers and mothers perform may become more gender balanced over time, with the men spending longer amounts of time per day on household chores and childcare.


“This enables mothers, who are also working women, to be able to focus more time on their careers,” he said.
Quoting the example of Jacinda Ardern, the former Prime Minister of New Zealand, James said, without the active participation of the father of her child, she would not have been able to fully focus on her important role in leading the country.


“We should aim to emulate similar practices as well here,” he said when officiating the Father’s Day event organised by Society For Equality, Respect And Trust For All Sabah (SERATA) at the Urban Tamu Riverson on Sunday. James’ speech text was read by his Special Duties Oficer, Dr Jeremiah Daniel@Voo Yee Wei.


Commending SERATA for the initiative, he said KPMKR is proud to continue supporting initiatives like these that focus on the continued welfare of families, which is a central foundation to society’s well being.


“Caring for father figures, whether they are biological or adopted, whether they are an uncle, a grandfather or merely a family friend are crucial to the children’s development.


“It is unfortunate, but fathers are often overlooked as parents, because people always view the mother as the default caretaker parent.


“The mother is usually the only one that is expected to take time off to care for a sick child, or to attend school activities,” he said.


James who is also Sugut Assemblyman said, this should no longer be the case, because more and more families are made up of both working mothers and working fathers.


He added that it is rare these days to find fathers who are the sole breadwinners of the family, as it is difficult to survive on a single income.


“We should no longer give the excuse that fathers are not equipped with the knowledge or skills to be a parent, because no one is naturally born to be good parents.


“As quoted by John Green, “The nature of impending fatherhood is that you are doing something that you’re unqualified to do, and then you become qualified while doing it.”.


“There are studies that show that fathers and infants can be equally as attached as mothers and infants. When both parents are involved with the child, infants are attached to both parents from the beginning of life,” he said.


James said the event was made possible through the tremendous support from local businesses and with that he acknowledge the sponsors and partners that have supported initiatives like these.


“Kudos to Urban Tamu, Gleneagles Hospital KK, DESA Group, Tiny Robot, Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort & Spa, Wish Upon A Gift, Aidah Cake House, Claypot Haus Restoran, Avangio Hotel KK, and last but not least SERATA for organising this momentous event and for gathering us here today!” he said.
END

ADVERTISEMENTspot_img
BERITA BERKAITAN