Rudolf Gaiseb

Former first lady Monica Geingos has urged the youth to plan and elect leaders that will tackle their communities’ day-to-day challenges.

 Speaking at the launch of the electoral civic education engagement initiative, Geingos told the youth to not only post change on social media but to get up and vote for it. She said the gap between the outrage that young people feel and the reality they see is where they must begin.

“We are standing at a crucial point, and with Regional and Local Authority elections upcoming, the power to bridge that gap is not just on your phone anymore; it’s in your hands,” she asserted.

“The power is in your vote. Your vote is your pen; it is the most powerful tool to move from being a critic… a keyboard warrior, to being an architect of your communities’ futures,” she said.

 Meanwhile, the initiative was hosted in partnership with the Electoral Commission of Namibia and the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts and Culture. Its objectives are to empower the youth with knowledge and tools to actively participate in the upcoming elections. It also aims to teach the broader role of these structures in governance and development.

Geingos highlighted that while young people, often frustrated with systems and leaders, seek to lead, they often become like the people they sought to replace.

She said this is the result of the failure of imagination and proper planning.

In addition, she noted that the systems cannot change if the people do not change and that they don’t reform themselves but get reformed by people.

National Youth Council of Namibia interim board chairperson Kennedy Kariseb also voiced that it is extremely important for both young and old to remain relevant and engage with these important structures of our governance.

“Our first step is to engage with these important governance pillars through our political master that all of us have, namely our vote, which we are entitled to, and it’s entrenched and protected for in our constitution,” he stated.

He added that “Registering and voting is certainly one step among many that ensures that we remain civilly engaged.” –rrgaiseb@gmail.com