Aspiring politician’s big vision

JASON Davis, 20, is a young man with a vision of a better country, which is why he started his own NPO, Youth SA.

Davis is an aspiring politician living in Strandfontein. He started the organisation last year as a way to help impoverished youth after doing some community service in the township of Phumlani.

“We started collecting clothes and food, and we donated them to informal settlements,” he said.

After this, he reached out to his fellow Strandfontein High School pupils and got them to donate food from their homes to start a soup kitchen for the homeless. “We got together and we would make soup and received donations from a local man named Bevan Sulaiman to buy bread.” Davis has visited several different townships and continues to feed the homeless and impoverished members through Youth SA.

Davis has recently returned from Dubai. “It’s sad to see that half of our youth who have Bachelor’s passes and diplomas are still unemployed and even those who aren’t are working at places like Shoprite and Pick n Pay.”

Being as young as he is, Davis has faced his fair share of obstacles in his career. “It’s tough because I have a lot of people who doubt me because of my age, but that just motivates me even more because I do love what I do and I want to make sure that the youth are able to fight for the country they deserve to live in.”

While Youth SA has not yet been registered as an official organisation, Davis is determined to get it off the ground. “People aren’t as committed to this sort of thing anymore. I’m looking for members and trying to find the few who are committed or who want to be.

“I hope to one day have a group I can rely on. We should be working with the government, not against them, but we also want to be able to tackle these issues ourselves. I didn’t have the best of upbringings, so I give because I know what it feels like to not have.” Davis is currently organising a youth march for October, to which he will be inviting local businesses and members of local government in an effort to address issues facing youth, such as unemployment and gang violence.

“Our country is one of the richest countries when it comes to resources and culture, and I believe that our people deserve better.”

Jason Davis is an aspiring politician living in Strandfontein. He started his own NPO, Youth SA last year as a way to help impoverished youth in his area after doing some community service in the township of Phumlani. PICTURE: SUPPLIED