Maravi

Politics can be decent, says YALI

Politics can be decent, says YALI
By Fridah Nkonde in Ndola
Fri 09 Dec. 2011, 12:25 CAT

POLITICS is not dirty but made to appear so by people involved in it,observes YALI. In an interview yesterday, Young African Leaders Initiative Zambia (YALI) governance advisor Isaac Mwanza said the only problem Zambia was facing was that the older generation wanted to cling to power and abuse youths for their own ends.

"As YALI, we do not view politics as dirty but good because without politics in our society, there can never be leaders. People involved in politics today are the ones making politics look dirty," he said.

Mwanza said politics was a channel to serve the people because it was one of the things that strengthened the country.

He said politics helped to strengthen democracy, adding that there was need for people intending to become politicians to know why they were getting into politics.

"In politics, you cannot say that since I have experience, I can become a president; because there is nothing like experience in politics. Politics is about putting into practice. As YALI, we believe politics is something that is very decent if well understood by the people involved. Imagine what this world would have been without politics," Mwanza said.

He suggested that a programme should be designed in colleges and universities to train people in politics just like other careers.

Mwanza said most of the people involved in politics did not even have a single idea of what was expected of them but only joined politics to use and bribe people in society.

"We need people to be trained and to be given leadership skills who can develop this nation. People can be trained from childhood to help them know what they are aspiring for," he said.

Mwanza said there was need for Zambian politicians to reflect on what sort of politics they wanted to engage in.

During a workshop in Chipata last Friday, Eastern Province information and publicity secretary Joseph Banda said young people viewed politics as a game full of tensions and emotions.

Banda said the level of awareness of the importance of politics among the youths was very low.

"Generally the young people view politics as a dirty game and some of them would not want to expose themselves to that kind of things at a tender age. They don't seem to take keen interest in understanding the important role that politics plays in the governance of the country.

If we have to move forward, I think there will be more need to strengthen the teaching of civic education even in institutions like schools," he said.

Banda said the youths must be taught and educated on the importance of participating in politics because politics determined the country's future.

Labels: CORRUPTION, POLITICS

posted by MrK @ 5:25 PM