Betrayers of our destiny

The youth must be challenged to wake up from their docility in the face of poor governance and corruption.

When shall they rise to protect a country they call home and aspire to inherit?

Plato, a great philosopher, said:  “If you do not take part in politics, you will be ruled by fools”.

The youth must fearlessly take up politics, to give it a new sense of vision and provide what the society really needs.

Laws must protect rights of citizens who believe in it. People who believe in the purity of knowledge and importance of education must take up the responsibility of providing knowledge to the young minds.

They must teach the youth values of life.Young Malawians must not only adhere to professional ethics but also influence the society to build a life oriented towards values and ethics.

They must bring the truth via the media. They must apply sense and act wise. They must be courageous to stand for the truth, raising their voice against the injustice.

The youth must strive for top positions where they can frame national policies which will bring development and prosperity, truth and justice, thereby creating a corruption free society.

The country needs proper structures that empower the youth to participate in politics just like the Youth League in the South Africa gives them a platform to exercise their right to political participation.

It is sad that the youth are not taking an active role to combat corruption in Malawi and the environment is not really conducive.

Corruption starts at grassroots level and grows to become part of life. The youth have the power to denounce corruption from grassroots. They are supposed to be firm as moral beacons in rooting out corruption.

This will be achieved when the youth are empowered to take a role in politics. They should take the initiative of fighting corruption. Being a systematic and institutional problem, corruption cannot be solved by a single person. The youth should fight to have institutional and political reforms that can curb corruption.

Corruption takes birth in society when its citizens fail to believe that that the nation is a common property of all its citizens and the generation yet to come.

Every situation where you leave truth, you are giving birth to corruption no matter how simple or complicated it is. Corruption is one of the greatest evil that breaks the backbone of any society. It has become a subculture, a common practice.

Faced with this malpractice, people have grown used to it; making it part of everyday life. If this evil is eradicated from this society, the greatest threat to development is over.

The youth must read the pulse of their nation. They must build a sense of patriotism towards their nation and refuse to be confined to carrying placards and decorating themselves with party paints during political rallies.

Socrates, a revered Greek philosopher, said an unreflected life is not worthy living. Let the youth rise up and reflect intensely on issues of corruption in this country and the society in general.

Let the youth enjoy the right of taking part in social issues that affect their country. By doing this, they will play an active role in fighting corruption.

Come May 21 2019, I hope to see the youth taking a leading role in denouncing corruption. This should be part of the reforms that Malawians of good will are striving for in terms of youth empowerment.