The IFP Youth Brigade has reiterated its 2012 call that the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) must prioritise the employment of the youth as electoral officers at voting districts.
It is incoherent that in the face of high levels of unemployment in South Africa that IEC job opportunities would be given to people who already have jobs like teachers and municipal officials.
The IEC must as a matter of urgency revisit its policies and cater more considerably for the employment of unemployed youth who account for about 60% of unemployed South Africans.
In 2012 the IFPYB pointed out the IEC that the other issue at play was the continued employment of SADTU, a Cosatu affiliate which is an ANC alliance partner. The credibility, freeness and fairness of elections is heavily dependent on the process itself, and a SADTU saturated process is far from fair. We call upon the IEC to stop using SADTU members as officials during elections.
The IEC needs to safeguard its due processes against doubt and mistrust. SADTU cannot have its cake and eat it; they cannot under any circumstances oversee elections because they have a direct interest in the outcome. Referees cannot be players.
The 2019 National and Provincial Elections are very important for the future trajectory of this country and we must as a matter of urgency clean up the electoral process and strengthen its credibility by ridding it of all that which compromises it.
The IFPYB will be seeking a meeting with the IEC to address this matter with them and it is our expectation that our sensible proposal will reach the favourable consideration of the IEC.
The IFPYB will begin a signature campaign in the coming weeks to petition the IEC to prioritise the youth agenda in its employment processes.
The clarion call of the Freedom Charter that the People shall share surely also means that the People shall share jobs as well.
For further information, please contact:
Mkhuleko Hlengwa, MP
IFPYB National Chairperson
071 111 0539
