President of the youth wing, Solomon Madzore, who was recently released from Chikurubi Maximum Prison after 13 months of imprisonment facing charges of murdering a policeman in Glenview last year, is heading the campaign.
Madzore, who bemoaned the lack of enthusiasm from the youths to register, told The Zimbabwean that the assembly was working towards ensuring that every individual who is an eligible voter participates in the coming election by at least registering.
“We can win this election if we ensure that first time voters are encouraged to register. We are targeting them because many do not know the importance of casting their vote,” he said.
Sixty percent of eligible voters are youths between the age of 18 and 35, according to recent research by the Zimbabwe Election Support Network. The initiative to encourage young people to vote is being complemented by other youth organisations.
One of the reasons for apathy among young people was that they had not been encouraged to be decision-makers about their own destiny during their early years, said Madzore.
“It is highly unlikely that the moment one reaches his or her 18th birthday, they would suddenly flip a switch and feel empowered to take on mantle of participatory government. It takes time to integrate these young adults, but that is what we are determined to do,” he added.
Organised structures within the assembly will conduct door-to-door campaigns distributing fliers containing information about the importance of registering as a voter and information on the nearest centre and how to register. Many would-be voters have been turned away at the Registrar General’s office for various reasons, and Madzore said the youth wing would assist wherever possible.
“Even for those who are not our supporters, we are reaching out to them because they have the right to be informed especially now that we will have elections early next year,” said Madzore.
Besides getting the word out about voting, the visits are also designed to create awareness of the MDC-T activities. “We are doing a lot of programmes throughout the country and we will explain these to people,” he said. The initiative to encourage young people to vote is being complemented by other youth organisations.
Post published in: News