The Youth and Politics in Zambia- Another View

Just as well I was discussing the possibility of having a serious new and youthful candidate relish the prospects of presidency in the 2011 election with some youth leaders the other day. In our discourse, a number of issues came out. Ofcourse by serious youthful candidates I don’t mean the likes of New Revolution whatever it’s called and the other self proclaimed doctor.

At this juncture, it is imperative to note that the role of the youth in politics world over has been that of agents of revolutionary change, if you look at most independence struggles and major political upsets, you will glean that the youth have played a major role in its outworking. This notorious fact is both an asset and a misfortune for the youth. It can be used either for or against the youth as will be highlighted in the course of this article.

Today the youth are mere cadres and tools used to propel other people’s political expediency- it’s a sad state of affairs. We need not to emphasize on how the youth are sidelined in the Political realm as this has already been dealt with in the earlier article. But let’s look at this from a different perspective, what are the youth themselves doing to take a more serious role in the future of Zambian politics?

We have established that the youth are powerful forces of change; this means the onus to either be a factor or not rests entirely on us. Human beings by nature designed to be free moral agents with a free conscience- choice. Indeed the power of reasoning and choice is what differentiates us from animals. Now if the majority of the youth have chosen to be used by cunning politicians, if they have decided that it is better to drink from 6 to 6 and if they have succumbed to the dictates of politics as usual, then that is not anyone’s problem. In this case we the youth have no one to blame but ourselves because we have allowed ourselves to be used. Why do we expect the government of some super natural force to put or involve us in important national matters when we ourselves have not shown the ability or the willingness to lead?

A lot of colleagues in the various youthful circles have mooted pushing for deliberate legislation that will serve to ensure that the youth have a certain representation in key government structures such as Parliament and cabinet guaranteed. My contention is that on principle we don’t need to create space or positions for any group or association just for the sake of doing it. We already have constitutional provisions that allow each and every Zambian- man, woman, youth, disabled to participate and be represented in government structures. You can vote when you are 18, you can be a member of parliament when you are 21 and you can go for Nkwazi house when you are 35, isn’t that enough?

Yet the fact that the youth are not a factor in Zambia’s political realm is not entirely our fault. In the recent years we have seen a stronger bond between money and politics develop, the two seem to complement each other. The obviously smaller financial muscle power that most youths have has placed them at a disadvantage. The youth cannot compete on a fair and equal ground with older and much more established politicians. Sadly the marriage between money and politics is a grim reality that will continue to hinder the progress of the youth in Politics.

The challenges that face the youth in their quest to partake in the national cake are real and if let unsolved will continue to impact negatively of youth development। Until the youth wake up from their 44 year old slumber and take center stage in the affairs of this country, the situation will remain the same. The way I see it, this country is not going anywhere until, we ‘the leaders of tomorrow’ do something about the bleak fate of our country. The future is in our hands!