I mean, old people are just everywhere. They are occupying almost every position presumably under the pretext that young persons do not care and therefore, cannot handle things properly.
Now my submission is very simple because it has shown itself through years that to the highest degree oldies are greedy. They like power. They are tribalistic. They have no respect for young ones. They have no vision. They want to be the jack of all trades.
I don’t care whether the masses concur with my submission not.
We constitute more than 50 per cent of the population as young persons in this country, but on contrary we are the most affected by developmental evils as attributed by lack of vision and the greed of our elders.
Whether we like it or not, the nature and components of political parties drives the path of development in this country. Political parties are the drivers of all politics in nation-building. All laws are passed through parliaments and their incumbents (parliamentarians) are products of political parties.
Therefore, how can we expect this nation to prosper with most of the oldies in parliaments where strategic decisions are being taken and subsequently where laws are being proclaimed?
I am not necessarily submitting that democracy has not taken course in the elections of our parliamentarians, but we need to revamp our in-house political party policies to accommodate the young and women leaders, because all our leaders (group categories) are not in majorities.
Young persons and women are the ones voting for the dominant male leaders, whilst they are in majority. So where is representative democracy? It’s very disproportional for the majority young persons and women to be led by minorities. Additionally, the minorities do not seem to make sense of the majority voters’ developmental needs.
I would like to urge political parties to make sure that young persons find their ways into parliament. They should not only use them as donkeys and barking dogs during hard times and election campaigns, but they should have them decide the future of this country.
Elders have had their time, from the struggle to independence and even two decades more to preside over the young and the women. Isn’t that enough? Can’t they just take a sit and watch things with their guiding words of wisdoms?
Namibia is in need of fresh thinking, an eagle eye, which lacks in most parliamentarian, traditional leaders, regional councillors and governors.
The world is advancing, so we need leaders who are able and willing to move along.
Jarii Tjeja-Tjatindi
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