Nineteen-year-old Molebatsi Valashiya voted for the first time at the White Church in Orlando East.
Valashiya said that she felt like she is finally an adult.
“I can’t believe that I have voted, it feels good I made the decision to vote and I voted,” she said.
The 19-year-old said that as much as she is a “Born free” she grew up listening to her parents talk about apartheid and how horrific it was.
“I understand that many died for me to have this opportunity to be voting today. I don’t take it for granted I know that a lot of blood was shed for me to have the right to vote,” she said.
Valashiya said many of her peers don’t seem to know the importance of voting.
She said many of them say that they don’t feel like their voices are heard anyway so they don’t see the reason to vote.
“Many of my friends are not voting today, they say that they don’t think that their votes will make a difference,” she said.
She added that her hope is that young people will have more job opportunities.
