Bulawayo teen becomes child president

BULAWAYO-BASED teenager Ntandoyenkosi Moyo of Milton High School was elected Zimbabwe's Child President on Thursday night at the Harare Institute of Technology.

Ten junior governors from each province were competing for the junior presidency post which was tightly contested in an election that only junior parliamentarians were the electorate.

The 18-year-old Ntandoyenkosi Moyo garnered 43 votes to beat the other nine candidates who became members of the Cabinet.

In an interview with NewsDay Teens soon after the elections, Moyo said he is dedicated to work for the community to build a better future for the youths and promote sustainable development among them.

"It is a great honour to represent Zimbabwean children and I promise that I will be committed to work towards alleviating the plight of underprivileged children across the country," said Moyo.

"Children of Zimbabwe, if you can have it in your heart you can have it in your hands. Stand up and be the man or woman of the moment. If I can do it, you can also do it," he added.

The newly-elected Cabinet is made up of first vice-president Mazvita Nyandoro from Manicaland, second vice-president Antony Mpala from Harare, Prime Minister Albert Banda from Masvingo, first Deputy Prime Minister Caroline Hungwe of Midlands, Deputy Prime Minister Lindile Khumalo of Mashonaland West, President of the Senate Larry Maredza of Mashonaland Central, Deputy President of the Senate Angela Chinamasa of Matebeleland South and Sergeant at Arms Lisa Khumalo of Matebeleland North.

On another note,  the swearing-in ceremony was scheduled for today (Sat 15 June) at the Harare International Conference Centre has been postponed to June 22.

The elections and all the activities of the incoming Junior Parliament for 2013-2014 were centred on this year's theme of the Day of the African Child; "Eliminating Harmful Social and Cultural Practices Affecting Children: Our Collective".

The Zimbabwe Junior Parliament was established in 1991 as a way of commemorating the Day of the African Child on June 16 each year. The programme allows children to participate in the national agenda, while addressing concerns affecting children in Zimbabwe.

lMeanwhile, Churchill Boys High's pupil, Confidence Thomas was on Wednesday evening elected the new Harare City junior mayor at Town House in the capital.

He beat six other contestants drawn from six different schools around the capital.

Candidates who were vying for the post were required to give a three-minute speech followed by questions from other junior prospective councillors before casting their votes secretly.

In an interview with NewsDay soon after the elections, Thomas said he is committed to work with vulnerable children and advocate for their rights.

"During my term in office, I promise to work to the best of my ability with the help of my council so as to empower
youths in different communities around the capital through various projects," said Thomas.

"Our council will only achieve positive results if the community itself is co-operating with us as we execute our duties in trying to bring out the new dimension among the youths' lives," he added.
The outgoing Junior Mayor, Aaron Takunda Chimutashu, said he was happy that his council had achieved some of their targeted goals and opened up doors on the international platform.

"Today signifies the beginning of the new era and an end of another era. To the incoming council I just want to edge you to work closely with the senior Mayor Muchadeyi Masunda so as to yield results during your reign," said Chimutashu.