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A couple of weeks ago, a 46-year-old factory worker was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a 12-year-old boy in Sungai Petani. According to police, the man had lured the boy with the promise of a free bicycle - twice.
The first time, the boy returned home with a bicycle. The second time, when promised another, he followed the man again. This time, he was taken into a forest area where the suspect allegedly acted inappropriately.
The question is - why would a 12-year-old follow a stranger?
Among the first things we teach our children is never follow strangers. Even if they offer you sweets, toys, or red balloons - don’t go. That’s basic parenting, something we drill into our toddlers as young as four or five, especially when they start exploring tamans.
So how does a preteen - old enough to own a smartphone, play online games, scroll TikTok - still fall for such a trick?
I know, I know - we shouldn’t blame victims. And this is not about blaming. This is about understanding. About asking the uncomfortable question: what kind of awareness are we instilling in our kids today? What’s their upbringing like? Are they being taught real-world awareness, or just ritual habits - baca doa before makan instead of “look left and right before crossing the road”?
Maybe that’s where we’ve gone wrong.
Because I’ve noticed something. We teach children to be polite. To obey adults. To listen without talking back. We remind them to solat and puasa, to behave well in public, to say “thank you” and “sorry.” All good things - but what about teaching them to think? To trust their instincts? To question when something doesn’t feel right?
Somewhere along the way, we traded critical thinking for compliance. We built a culture that rewards obedience more than awareness.
We tell kids not to question teachers, not to challenge elders, not to be kurang ajar. But sometimes, safety requires a little kurang ajar. Sometimes, survival depends on saying “No” loudly, firmly, even to an adult.
When a child has never been encouraged to speak up - when every “why” is shut down with “because I said so” - what happens when danger comes dressed as kindness?
Maybe the boy wasn’t bodoh. Maybe he was just too trusting. Maybe he believed that all adults meant well. Maybe no one ever told him that some people don’t.
And that’s the hard truth we, as a society, need to face. Our children are growing up in a world that looks safe on the surface but isn’t. And while we can’t control every danger out there, we can equip them better.
We can start by changing how we teach. By adding “street smarts” to our moral lessons.
By reminding kids that their voice matters - that it’s okay to say “No,” to run, to shout, to tell someone when they feel uncomfortable.
Safety doesn’t come from silence. It comes from awareness.
So yes, by all means, teach them their prayers. But also teach them how to cross a road safely, how to say no to a stranger, how to walk away from danger.
Because in this world, both faith and vigilance go hand in hand.
And maybe then, our kids won’t just grow up to be budak baik. They’ll grow up aware.
Fa Abdul (fa.abdul.penang@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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