Youth councils quite irrelevant now!
Jul 19, 2006
SIR — I wish to react to Mr Kibedi Zaake’s article of Tuesday in which he glorifies the youth councils. i think youth councils are no longer necessary in the multiparty system since the youth with party affiliation are supposed to be loyal to their party principles.
SIR — I wish to react to Mr Kibedi Zaake’s article of Tuesday in which he glorifies the youth councils. i think youth councils are no longer necessary in the multiparty system since the youth with party affiliation are supposed to be loyal to their party principles.
Youth councils have not been at all effective in building positively- ambitious youth and the problems the youth face are not universal.
many are illiterate, others out of school while others are in school. this just deepens disparity as the elite youth will strive to dominate the councils. Funding the youth council will just nurture the culture of ‘petty corruption’ from the grassroots which is more dangerous.
Kibedi’s argument that the youth feel uncomfortable aligning themselves with political party youth leagues is a desperate attempt to encourage cowardice among the youth to think that they can only be understood by fellow youth.
This is very unfortunate for us! Kibedi also argues that the young people need a forum outside their political parties to harness their energies, enthusiasm and creative abilities... This argument, with due respect, does not hold water. there are examples of youth that have risen through the party youth leagues using the skills that Kibedi is now relegating to the youth councils. These have become a force to reckon with in the national politics of uganda.
they have been able to stand up and comfortably articulate issues of national interest before their mother parties. People like Odonga Otto (FDC) and Mukasa Mbidde (DP) have not risen to where they are because of youth councils.
We do not need youth councils in this new political dispensation.
Emmy Otim
Kampala
Youth councils have not been at all effective in building positively- ambitious youth and the problems the youth face are not universal.
many are illiterate, others out of school while others are in school. this just deepens disparity as the elite youth will strive to dominate the councils. Funding the youth council will just nurture the culture of ‘petty corruption’ from the grassroots which is more dangerous.
Kibedi’s argument that the youth feel uncomfortable aligning themselves with political party youth leagues is a desperate attempt to encourage cowardice among the youth to think that they can only be understood by fellow youth.
This is very unfortunate for us! Kibedi also argues that the young people need a forum outside their political parties to harness their energies, enthusiasm and creative abilities... This argument, with due respect, does not hold water. there are examples of youth that have risen through the party youth leagues using the skills that Kibedi is now relegating to the youth councils. These have become a force to reckon with in the national politics of uganda.
they have been able to stand up and comfortably articulate issues of national interest before their mother parties. People like Odonga Otto (FDC) and Mukasa Mbidde (DP) have not risen to where they are because of youth councils.
We do not need youth councils in this new political dispensation.
Emmy Otim
Kampala