KENOSI MOSALAKAE | Youth is not a panacea for efficient government

The obsession with the youth in politics/leadership is grossly misplaced. The serious flaw in this country is not absence of youth but the mindset that permeates society presently including the youth themselves.

Worse, the youth of this country have been so brainwashed that they see nothing wrong with the fabrication of past events that are presented as history. They further have a minimal society oriented attitude and their passion is with what is called a political party.

Most see things in terms of how things affect loyalty to some individual or entity even if such B individual/entity presents no value to society and/or in fact drags society down in the doldrums. They are not open-minded, hence even university students of today appear only able to conform to some political party dogma. They have no common passion for the upliftment of the entire society but rather for the welfare of a variety of political parties.

They even exist as different political parties within single campuses. Just wonder how student life can be dealt with on national political party policies. You do not find a national student organisation in the mould of Saso, for example, with one common objective of societal upliftment.

They are more like the National Union of South African Students (Nusas) and ASB. These were national organisations that adhered to different views of the world, not political parties, and existed on different campuses. ASB at Stellenbosch, Pretoria, Potchefstroom universities etc, while Nusas was at UCT, Wits, Rhodes, Natal, etc. ASB were conformist concretised in the apartheid thinking with no forward-looking mentality. University students need to be open-minded.

Today’s youth understand violent protest as the only weapon to express discontent regardless of having a vote. They have been groomed in a society where majority rule is understood to mean that there is nothing criminal or evil as long as the majority approves.

 They have even swallowed the categorisation of “freedom” into silos and are obsessed with the mythical concepts such as “economic freedom”. Not sure what is meant by “economic freedom” (everybody being a millionaire or what?).

The first president of the ANC Youth League, Anton Lembede, said: “Freedom is an indispensable condition for all progress and development. It will only be when Africans are free that they will be able to exploit fully and bring to fruition their divine talent and contribute something new towards the general welfare and prosperity of Mankind; and it will only be then that Africans will enter on a footing of equality with other nations of the world into the commonwealth of nations; and only then will Africans occupy their rightful and honourable place among the nations of the world.”

Youth need to be made aware that “freedom” burdens them with the responsibility to work hard to be the best they can be – scientists, engineers, agriculturist, environmentalists, innovators, etc to be thinking of producing an Azania car for example, instead of thinking of being in parliament or being next to (or member of ) party-X to be able to get the next tender.

They should understand that colonial apartheid oppression was not just a negative emotion from the oppressor but restriction of self-development and the recognition of self-worth

Responsible adults should not be talking about youth being in political leadership but that youth should be working hard at making the best of themselves. 

We do not need just youth, or old people. We need forward thinking individuals obsessed with the progress of society to run the affairs of our society.

• Dr Mosalakae is Sowetan reader