Maravi

Nawakwi pledges to address youths' needs once elected
By Allan Mulenga
Tue 02 Apr. 2013, 14:01 CAT

EDITH Nawakwi says FDD has pledged to engage young people in addressing their problems when elected into office. And Nawakwi has observed that the focus on girl child education has left the boy child completely neglected.

In an interview, Nawakwi, who is Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD) president, said youths had brilliant ideas, but lacked the platform where they could present them.

"We need to engage them and they are willing to be engaged. So, when I am president, that is a strategy I will use and say, 'look, what do you want to do?' I will not go to them and say, 'I want to take you to Namushakende so that you can go to the university because I want to put you in farming'. Not every young person can be a farmer," she said.

Asked whether the party's mentorship programme targeted at youths was a political strategy ahead of 2016 elections, Nawakwi responded: "If you tell me that it is a political strategy, I don't know what the young people will think amongst all of us politicians. FDD, and Edith Nawakwi in particular provide the best solution to their problems. It is them to judge. We are not basically going to them to ask them to vote for us, this is FDD. We genuinely call them and those young people are extremely brilliant."

She observed that not all leaders were willing to talk to young people about their problems.

"Yes, I am in the opposition, but I have to spend my time not only looking for votes for 2016, but trying to get people to realise that we cannot share poverty and we can share knowledge which we can apply and eradicate poverty," she said.

"You will be amazed what is coming out of this. It is not only graduates we have young people who have distinction, six or seven points and they are not able to go to university because they have no money."

And Nawakwi observed that the boy child had been completely neglected.

"All of us are talking about the girl child. The boy child has completely been neglected. There is a boy child who is in the pub drinking tujilijili and we have forgotten about them. All of us mothers are now talking about the girl child and girl education. Let's talk about our children. I want my daughter to excel. This should be the basis of government. What it is it that the boy child can do? These are the huge problems which can not only be left to people in formalised office. All of us need to get involved," said Nawakwi.

Labels: EDITH NAWAKWI, FDD, YOUTHS

posted by MrK @ 5:51 PM