Kliptown teenager shares first voting registration experience
"It was a bit of a drag when I thought about it. I thought about the long queues and waiting for hours" - Chenielle Wessels.
While the turnout amongst Youth was disappointingly low in Kliptown, those that went out to register to vote returned with glittering reviews about the experience.
One such first-time voter was Chenielle Wessels. The 19-year-old from Kliptown came to the Klitown Community Centre on Sunday, along with her mom, to register to vote for the first time.
“It was a bit of a drag when I thought about it. I thought about the long queues and waiting for hours and I said ‘that’s not how I want to spend my day’. I was not looking forward to it. I didn’t know much about the online one to try it so I just decided to go to the station instead” she said.
To her surprise, the process was relatively quick.
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“The was no queue, no nothing. It was a quick in and out. Nothing like what I expected. It’s definitely something that I would advise other young people to come through for and not just rely on the photos you see on social media or what you think it might be like,” she later told Soweto Urban after registering.
Her mother, Dora Wessels called on parents to play a bigger role in teaching kids about the importance of voting.
I think not too many young people are just not interested, especially with all the challenges we are facing. But I also think it’s important to still vote and parents have an important role to play in encouraging their children. I always tell my children that it is important to come out and vote. Tomorrow that vote is what will make the difference,” Dora said.
“We have to put a lot more emphasis on education and making sure that young people understand the importance of voting. That they are the future and that if they don’t make good political decisions today then later they are the ones who will struggle,” she added.
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