Blessers like ‘sugar daddies on steroids’
More girls are enticed to link up with rich older men called “Blessers” on social media and on a phone app which is about to be launched.
|||Durban - “Sugar daddies on steroids”. That’s how the “Blessers” trend has been described, as more girls are enticed to link up with rich older men on social media and on a phone app which is about to be launched.
KwaZulu-Natal Premier Senzo Mchunu, who has recently spoken out about “Blessers”, said on Friday that he and KZN MEC for Health Sibongiseni Dhlomo had been interviewed by the UK”s BBC television on Thursday about the controversial trend.
He said that after the programme had been aired, they had received huge support from South Africans in the UK.
Mchunu said the South African Youth Development Forum in the UK, had offered to facilitate exchange programmes to help girls to become self sufficient, instead of relying on “Blessers”.
Last week Mchunu said “Blessers” were “creating havoc in our society and are behind this inter-generational sex”.
Local NGO, Umgeni Community Empowerment Centre Youth Co-ordinator, Thami Ntimbane, said: “The sugar daddy” syndrome has always been there, but now - it has become sugar daddies on steroids.”
He warned of the dangers of attachment to a married man, sexually transmitted diseases and abuse .
“If the Blessee” doesn”t perform the sexual favours he may want, he could hold her against her will”. He said “it was just another form of prostitution”.
The founder of Blesser Finder, Ditshego (he did not want to reveal his surname), said on Friday night that he and his friends had created their page as a social experiment. He denied that it was a form of prostitution.
“We are not charging for this service... We are like an online mall, where you can meet a like-minded person,” he said.
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Independent on Saturday