They are still faced with the challenge of choosing between school and games.

As schools’ reopened last September 3, many Douala city’s youths picked up the habit to visit and partake in games involving staking money. As money meant for school become available to them from their parents often it is misdirected to such appalling uses. With families where parents or guardians just eke a living the burden of sending back the child to the same class due to failure in exams becomes a nightmare.

The degree of addiction of the city’s youth however noticeable among school children is the result of proliferation of various gambling forms, both officialised and informer types. Of all types Parisportif, poker, cards, draught, ludo have swayed their interest. Strategies like advertising of winners in newspapers and on TV, as well as through mobile vans, or free distribution either as stickers, umbrellas, T-shirts, balloons, or journals may be a danger that is gaining ground in society in absolute silence.

Uniformed school children rather than returned to classes last week did return to gambling halls. The average Douala parents are still hard put to comprehend the demands of the young generation has neglected the role of the judiciary which should enforce existing legal restrictions. A New Bell parent has given up on his son who has become addicted to gambling of late in spite of his emphasis on moral piety. He said pilfering has become a common thing while failure in the last Baccalaureate exams was a similar accusation to his son who is now gamble-addicted.

Uniformed school children continue to sneak into gambling houses and kiosks, such as in joints where money is unthinkably squandered to gambling. Neighbourhoods likes Ange Raphael, Deux Eglises in Akwa, New Bell and Deido, to name but these, where a blend of young people and adults tussle to make overnight riches, paints a clear picture of the fact that the former have either neglected or forgotten the promises of education and have embraced a poison so deadly to their future than they can now apprehend. Most of them expressing their views on condition of anonymity said they just want to play the games. “We do it out of class period,” one of them said. He disclosed that they do hide their uniforms in bags before indulging in the evil.

Cities where gambling is number one, like Douala, young people are bound to fall victim, and the economy of the city risk depending in the hands of those who wait on chance to make sudden wealth, or better still to supply square meals to the family.