Back when we were still in primary or secondary school, bullies often roamed the school compound -- whether discreetly or openly would depend on how afraid they were of the school's disciplinary board.
According to the New Straits Times, a study by the Ministry of Health revealed that 16 per cent of teenagers here were involved in bullying, but the specific details what type of bullying were not disclosed.
Further information found that 13 per cent of Malaysian teenagers were smoking, seven per cent admitted to sexual activities and six per cent even attempted suicide.
That's not all.
Our teenagers are also consuming alcoholic beverages from as young as 12 and 13, 10.8 per cent of them to be exact!
Now, these problems may seem harmless to you, especially bullying. Some may argue that the 'issue' could be just kids fighting or arguing among themselves.
But do you remember the two bullying cases involving youth from last year that led to death?
In fact, there was a separate survey conducted by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) last year revealing that many Malaysian children are very worried about being bullied.
Kids should be more concerned about their studies instead of being bullied by their peers!
"This should be a wake up call for all to face such challenges with a serious approach," Health Minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said.
These statistics were based on the results of the 2018 Adoslescent Health Survey by the Health Ministry, involving children between the ages 13 and 17.