Don’t use youth as tools of political violence ahead of 2021 polls

ZAMBIA will be holding the general elections on August 12, 2021. The electorate will be afforded an opportunity to elect leaders of the former’s choice. This is good as it entails democracy because people will have the democratic right to elect their own leaders without being coerced.

However, some politicians both from the ruling party and the opposition party don’t mean well as they incite the youth to engage in political violence which should not be the case. This becomes imminent prior to the elections.

Some pockets of political violence have been witnessed in our country where the political cadre crashed. The incidences of political violence in most cases culminate in deaths and injuries owing to the fact that guns and iron bars are used.

The cadres from the ruling Patriotic Front (PF) and the opposition United Party for National Development (UPND) have been the major culprits of political violence going by the recent happenings in the political spheres.

President Edgar Chagwa Lungu is on record denouncing political violence perpetrated by cadres either from the ruling party or the opposition parties. President Lungu further mentioned that there shouldn’t be any sacred cows when it comes to political violence.

It is unfortunate that some politicians take advantage of the vulnerability of these youth because the latter are not employed. These youth are either bought beer or given money by some politicians to wage a fight against their perceived political rivals. This doesn’t augur well.

In view of the aforementioned, I implore some politicians to desist from using the youth as tools of political violence ahead of the 2021 polls. Why should people fight because of having divergent political views? In a nutshell, politics should not divide us because we are one. There is need to co-exist.

Youth should be responsible citizens by not engaging in political violence let alone killing or maiming each other because of politics. The point worth noting is that there can only be one leader at any given time. Let us practice peaceful campaigns instead of resorting to political violence ahead of this year’s general elections.