Don't drop out, step up: Stellenbosch student gives his peers a lecture

“We are a sensitive generation. We see all the challenges facing us all the time and it worries me that we are struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel and know that our voice can make a difference.”

Josh Amos from the Cape Flats is a student at Stellenbosch University. He hopes his first vote will mark the beginning of his political agency as a young South African, bringing with it reform to education and an end to violence in his ward.

“There’s so much violence on the Cape Flats,” he said. “I really want to help change that.”

Amos was concerned by the decision by some of his peers not to vote. “Every vote counts towards the ultimate goal,” he said. “More students like myself need to recognise that our voices make a difference.”

Voting stations in the university town were busy on Wednesday, with many first-time voters turning up despite the rain - and in many cases the hangovers that accompany a public holiday.

“Today is not about lying around at home and skipping lectures,” said one student. “It’s about our constitutional rights. I’m very excited to be a part of this democracy.”

Other young voters in the queue leading to the imposing Stellenbosch Town Hall were still unsure of who they would be voting for, saying the election campaign had left them with more questions than answers.

“There hasn’t really been much political talk around campus,” said 19-year-old Simone Lategan. “I just hope that more money can be allocated to education in South Africa and the new leadership can cut corruption.”

Glen Takelani, 21, was “nervous” about casting his first vote. “I feel like all the bigger parties have been using serious issues to campaign for more votes, so I’m putting my trust in the smaller parties, who haven’t used issues like land reform to get votes.”

Shane Hatting, 22, said he was proud to be part of the electoral process. “It’s my first vote. I’m keen to experience everything around it and feel what democracy is really about,” he said.

“I hope that my vote counts for something and we see some real change.”