GEORGE NEWS - Finding young people who have registered to vote has been a difficult task for Idinga. Most of the young people we spoke to did not show interest in voting and have not registered to vote, citing reasons such as "I don't see the point."
According to StatsSA 2017 figures, young people aged between 15 and 34 make up almost 25 million of the country's population. Before the final voter registration weekend, the Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) launched its 2019 National and Provincial Elections Campaign, with a new focus on encouraging young and first-time voters to participate in the electoral process.
In a statement released on Wednesday, 30 January, the IEC was positive about the total number of new registrations for the upcoming elections, of which an encouraging 81% are under 30 years old. However, the commission is concerned that approximately 9,8 million eligible voters are still not registered, of which approximately 6 million are under 30 years old.
Idinga was encouraged though, by the young people we did find who still believe in the power of voting, people like Mzukisi Mntuyedwa. He said he is going to vote because he wants to protect the peace and stability of his country's democracy that his forefathers fought very hard for.
"What I would like to see this time around is for Government to actually root out all the corrupt leaders in government and private sector. I am very encouraged by all the commissions that have recently been set up and I hope after they are all done, those who have been mentioned on numerous occasions within these commissions will be brought to book.
"They must pay back the monies they stole and they must all be arrested, irrespective of who they are. Service delivery should be fast-tracked, and the government should create more jobs for all the unemployed graduates that are sitting at home.
"Yes, experience for entry-level jobs have been scrapped, but I am yet to see that being implemented. I appeal to all the youth of this country to go out and vote in their numbers," said Mntuyedwa.
n The IEC again encouraged young voters to register at local IEC offices in the short time left before the elections are proclaimed, which is expected to be during February. Once the elections are proclaimed, the voters' roll will close for these elections.
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