Indecent dressing-especially amongst youths, is on the increase. All sorts of dressing are visible in public places like offices, schools and on the streets. It is common to find girls wearing strapless clothes, cleavage dresses, miniskirts and even transparent and tight-fitting dresses.
Boys wear sagging trousers that expose their underpants, plait their hair and wear cleavage shirts. This funny dressing appears to be a deliberate act to look sensuous and sexy, so to entice the opposite sex.
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According to Dubila Macmillian, 24, a webmaster at Seven Academy First-Class Institute, Bali-Douala, “The influx of tourists in our country greatly affects dressing patterns of youths, who copy what these tourists wear. They fail to understand that tourists dress according to their own climatic conditions.”
Ambe Nelly,a teacher at American School of Douala, says, “Social media contributes greatly to the rise of indecency in our society. Celebrities are setting a trend of indecent dressing, which gullible fans blindly imitate.” In a nation endowed with rich cultures and traditions, it is annoying to see them near extinction.
According to Mukoro Marie Therese, founder of Love Generation Ministries International, people should always ask the Holy Spirit to guide them to dress. “Everything a Christian does must glorify God,” she remarks, referring to the Bible (1 Cor 6: 19-20), which says “your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit … You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So, glorify God in your body.”
Unfortunately, today indecent dressing is becoming a norm. Some women argue that they live in a free world and should not be told what to wear.
“People should mind their business. I wear what I want. Back in school, I had friends who dressed decently but committed atrocities. Dressing in a sexy way does not mean you are terrible. Some prostitutes dress decently,” fumes Sandrine Tchatou, 24, graduate of University of Dschang.
Indecent dressing has many negative effects. You are addressed the way you are dressed. People lose respect depending on the way they dress. Women who expose their bodies are considered cheap by men and the former become easy targets for sexual desires. This has often led to rape and other forms of sexual violence. Employers reject indecently dressed job-seekers because the latter are considered irresponsible. There is urgent need to curb indecency, passing for fashion.
To arrest this ugly development, Ayemi Moradise of Buamora Enterprise in Buea, encourages parents to start enforcing discipline on children at an early age. “Parents should ensure that TV programs watched by children, as well as children’s clothes are appropriate. Most importantly, we all should teach by example, because children emulate what they see others do,” she recommends.
Melvis Wung, 38, a Pastry Chef in Limbe, underscores need for constant sensitization of youths. “Some youths dress indecently because of peer pressure and others just for the fun of it. Sensitization campaigns should be organized in public places. Anyone indecently dressed who visits an office should not be attended to,” she proposes.
Some institutions of learning have taken measures to curb indecent dressing. The University of Buea (UB), for example, fights against indecent dressing. Campus police check how students are dressed before entering the campus.
“All indecently dressed students are prohibited from entering the campus. No one enters the campus with transparent or tight-fitting gowns. Dresses of students, teachers and other support staff should cover sensitive body parts like breasts, buttocks and thighs,” Alexi Mbia, UB Campus Police man, explains.
Cameroon Penal Code, Section 263 on Public Indecency, states, “Whoever publicly offends against decency shall be punished with imprisonment from 15 (fifteen) days to 2 (two) years or with fine of from CFA 10,000 (ten thousand) to CFAF 100 000 (one hundred thousand), or with both such imprisonment and fine.” It is time the fight against indecent dressing be taken much more seriously in Cameroon..
