Staying away from social media in this era can be quite challenging, even for kids. It is almost impossible to keep children away from the volumes of information on the internet and it’s getting more complex because of the fun and leisure that it brings today.
How then can children be protected from harmful information exposure much as they may need technological gadgets?
Today on The Fatboy Show, while proposing the appropriate age for children to possess smartphones, James Onen said girls should be given phones at the age of 20 and boys at 15.
“In my opinion, a son should get his first phone at 15 and a daughter at 20. Girls have been eaten because of smartphones!” he exclaimed.
“The fact is that if a boy has a phone, most of the girls he will be texting will ignore him, others won’t reply or will ask for money which he won’t have and most will block him. So he will be consoling himself with porn mostly. But all a girl has to do is be cute and everyone will be reaching out to talk to her, take her out, and offer her gifts.”
Olive Najjuma, the co-presenter of the Show, agreed that much as the worst-case scenario for a boy in possession of a phone could be watching pornography, for a girl, it may end in her engaging in pornography.
“Even your friends as a parent, your cousins and workmates will try to poach your daughter who is only 14, true story,” she emphasized.
In her opinion, Mariana, a contributor to the show said girls should have their first phones after O-level when they are about 16/17 years old. At that age, she believes girls have some information on managing certain situations.
“But you don’t give them a smartphone because, the fact that smartphones provide access to some sites, a child might end up on them. So I’d strongly recommend a button phone for children because even with the advancement in technology, there’s always time for them to catch up with it,” she said.
The Fatboy show is hosted by James Onen aka Fatboy, Olive, and Sarah every weekday from 6 am to 10 am on RX Radio.