A community educator at Walvis Bay, Hubert Mukosho, has urged parents to be more alert in picking up signs of substance abuse in their children.

Mukosho says when children are using illegal substances, they are most likely to switch their moods and personalities.

Sent to prison in 2009, Hubert Mukosho has become a community educator who graduated with an Honors Degree in Life-long Learning and Community Education. 

He has been doing his part in motivating the community of Walvis Bay to refrain from social ills such as drug abuse and other types of crimes since he became a free man. 

Mukosho held individual counseling sessions for parents and children who attended a prayer event for children who are currently trapped in social evils. 

Regarding substance abuse, Mukosho told parents that there are always signs to look out for when children become victims, including personality changes, eye contact avoidance, and a lack of interest in domestic chores.  

At the same event, Walvis Bay Mayor Trevino Forbes encouraged children who are going through abuse to speak out. 

"We had a young boy killed by his own stepfather, someone he trusted, and today I say to you youngsters, our offices are there, we exist because of you, Councillor Ryan Gordon, our uncle Hubert is there at the multi-purpose center, our police officers are there to protect you. We don't want you to hide any suffering you are going through at the hands of adults."

The participants lit candles and prayed for all youth going through social ills and for those who have been killed, raped, abused, and gone missing over the past few years in Namibia.