OPINION | Remembrance alone was never Youth Day’s point: Vusi Gumbi

By Vusi Gumbi

This year marks 50 years since the historic uprising in Soweto, where high school students took to the streets to reject Afrikaans as a medium of instruction in an education structure that was systemically engineered to ensure that Black people in general, and Africans in particular, inherit a life of destitution.

Since the dawn of democracy, every June 16, South Africa returns to a familiar rhythm of remembrance. The speeches are delivered, the flags are raised, and the stories of 1976 are retold with urgency and reverence. We remember young people who refused silence, who insisted on being heard, and who forced a political system to confront the power of collective voice; a reflection of organising and mobilising. We equally remember that the road to freedom was not free, it was costly; it was paved by the bodies of young people who dared to confront the brutality of a regime that dehumanised Black people, young people, some of whose remains lie in unmarked graves.

Remembrance alone, however, has never been the endpoint of Youth Day. It is meant to be a bridge between memory and action, between honouring past sacrifices and exercising present responsibilities. As the country marks the 50th anniversary of the June 16, 1976 uprising, we remember the courage of young people whose defiance altered the course of the country’s history. Yet the significance of Youth Day lies not only in looking back, but also in considering what that legacy demands of us today. This year, that reflection leads directly to another important civic moment: the final voter registration weekend, taking place on June 20 and 21, as the Electoral Commission  (IEC) prepares the country for the Local Government Elections in November.

This connection is particularly important given the state of electoral participation in South Africa. While approximately 28 million people are registered to vote, only about 58% of registered voters cast their ballots in the 2024 national and provincial elections. Equally concerning is the fact that more than 13 million eligible South Africans remain outside the voters’ roll altogether. These figures point to a growing gap between the constitutional right to participate and the practical exercise of that right, a gap that should concern anyone committed to the health and legitimacy of our democracy.

There is a growing distance between these two ideas: between memory and action, between symbolic recognition and practical engagement. We commemorate the courage of young people who demanded inclusion, while many eligible South Africans, particularly young people, remain outside the voters’ roll and therefore outside one of the most important mechanisms through which citizens influence public affairs.

The students from Morris Isaacson High School, from Naledi High School and many others in Soweto confronted a system that denied them participation, access and a meaningful voice. Their struggle, the uprising, was not simply about the education policy, it was about being seen, being recognised and the citizen’s right to shape one’s own future. While South Africa’s democratic context is fundamentally different today, the question of participation remains as relevant as ever.

That local government is the closest form of government to the people is a view that has been expressed too many times and it is true. It is the cornerstone of bread and butter issues that shape daily lives: water, sanitation, primary healthcare, refuse removal, roads, parks, local economic development, and community facilities. The quality of local governance is often felt long before national policy reaches a community.

This is where Youth Day’s meaning risks becoming incomplete. If 1976 was about being heard in a system that refused to listen, then 2026 presents a different challenge: ensuring that our voices are not absent from a system that allows us to participate.

The answer is not found in commemorative speeches or struggle songs, however passionate they may be, nor is it found in social media posts, regardless of how many likes they may get. It is found in active citizenry, the willingness of citizens to take part in democratic processes, beginning with registration. To its credit, the IEC has not been passive in the face of declining youth participation. Through initiatives such as the Tertiary Institutions Campaign and Beats for My Peeps, the commission has invested in civic education, voter registration and democratic awareness among young South Africans. These programmes recognise that sustaining democracy requires more than administering elections, which the commission has done exceptionally without fail in all election cycles; it requires cultivating a culture of participation among those who will inherit and shape the country’s future. This is because young people and the future will always be linked, as none can exist in the absence of the other.

The final voter registration weekend is therefore more than an administrative exercise; it is a gateway to participation and it is the final opportunity for eligible citizens who are not registered to ensure that they can cast their ballots when South Africans head to the polls on November 4.

In a democracy, disengagement is not the answer because absence is not without consequence. On November 4, councillors will still be elected,  Members of the Mayoral Committees (MMCs) will still be appointed, decisions will still be made, budgets will still be approved and services will still be delivered or not delivered. The difference is that those outcomes will be determined by those who choose to participate, those who understand that the power of the ballot in a democracy in 2026 is just as powerful as an uprising in an apartheid society in 1976.

I am reminded of the words of Prof. Mcebisi Ndletyana when he delivered his inaugural lecture as Full Professor at the University of Johannesburg on July 19, 2022, when he said, “For transformative sustainable changes to happen, much wider societal agitation is needed. Political costs prompt politicians into action. The present rumblings are encouraging, but South Africa is crying for much more. Inefficiencies of public institutions reflect our own collective weaknesses. Only an active and outraged citizenry can effect meaningful change. Vukani bantu”.

It is therefore important that Youth Day should not only remind us of a struggle for voice, it should challenge us to ask what we are doing with the democratic opportunities won through that struggle. Remembering the youth of 1976 is important and equally important is ensuring that their legacy is expressed through active citizenship.

On Tuesday, as South Africa marks Youth Day and prepares for the final voter registration weekend in the same week, perhaps the most fitting tribute is not merely to remember the call for a voice, but to ensure that our own voices are counted. The journey from remembrance to registration is short in distance, but significant in meaning. It is a journey every eligible citizen should make. Be counted.

Vusi Gumbi is a PhD candidate in Political Studies at the University of Johannesburg. His MA dissertation was on symbolism and voter choice in South Africa; his Honours research paper was on the PR electoral system and accountability deficit in Parliament.