Backlash After Gozo Bishop Criticises Childcare For Kids Under 2 Years Old

In a post on social media, Parliamentary Secretary for Equality and Reforms Rebecca Buttigieg hit back at statements made by Bishop of Gozo Anton Theuma wherein he criticised putting children under two years old in childcare.

Speaking during his homily, Bishop Theuma expressed concern that if a baby becomes an ‘object’ because parents have too much to do, then it’s easy for them to place them in childcare.

He said that when a baby is no longer seen as a human being and money takes precedent, then the baby becomes an object less important than a bedroom they seek to renovate, ending up in childcare.

In response, Parliamentary Secretary Rebecca Buttigieg said that, as a mother with a child who attends childcare, she cannot understand such discourse.

‘I can testify to the dedication and professionalism of child carers’, she wrote. ‘I can testify to how close the activities that take place in these centres complement that which happens as parents.’

‘Discourse that says that anyone who uses child cares is abandoning their child is not right. Childcare, which is free nowadays, was an essential measure for thousands of Maltese and Gozitan parents. A socialist measure that not only helped women achieve more economic independence, but also became a crucial and formative education for children.’

What do you think?

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