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One of our most influential powers as citizens is exercising our right to vote. However, with this power comes certain responsibilities such as considering the options – people who are running – and make proper decisions when electing a campaign. Changing the election process would involve a lot of procedures, which could create complications for the country. In order to come to an upright conclusion about whether or not uneducated people should participate in the election process, we must take a number of factors into account.
The uneducated are easily manipulated by the political elite. In South Africa, the illiterate is made to believe that it is because of the ANC that they have water, sanitation, housing, grants etc. This is why people continue to vote for a party that has continuously failed them. Nelson Mandela once said: “Education is the most powerful weapon”. If the election process only involves people who are informed, people who are educated and know what is happening in the outside world, then perhaps the country could develop faster. These people would be specialized in politics as, unlike the uneducated, they have the historical context and knowledge to make important decisions such as voting.
Yet who or what determines the term ‘uneducated’? Is it referring to completing some college hours, high school, college degree or what? The government is going to waste so much time, categorizing people as ‘educated’ or ‘uneducated’. There are more serve concerns in the country or world than trying to find out if an individual is educated enough to partake in his/her own country’s election process. Jason Brennan, ethics and public policy professor, said that concentrating power in the hands of a few often results in personal benefit at the expense of others.
Spreading power among everyone – a democracy – individual votes no longer matter, so most voters are biased and ignorant. They do not care about what happens in the country. The majority of the uneducated people do not pay tax either way, so, why should they be granted the right to make decisions for the country? It is like a game to them. American journalist Jaime Simo says that he sees the elections as a ‘massive coin toss’, of which people do not take too seriously.
However, every citizen of a country is responsible for the nation’s growth. Some cannot afford education, but that does not mean they should be denied the chance to have a say in the way the government is run and hence the life that they have. Why would they be called citizens if they are not allowed to vote? Section 19(3) states that every adult has the right to a vote in elections for any legislative body established in terms of the Constitution. If we start making restrictions, beside citizenship and current age, where do we stop with the restrictions?
With rights comes responsibilities. It is important to be knowledgeable when it comes to political issues. People should be responsible enough to not vote if they do not understand what is happening in their country as they will be easily deceived and jeopardize the growing of their economy.
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