17 July 2009
	CIVIL SERVICE Government wants you By Garreth Bloor Declining youth apathy and an increase in political awareness are priming students for civil service, but recruitment specialists say the lucrative opportunities remain in the private sector

After SA's recent national election, and the history-making ascension of Barack Obama to the highest office in the US government, politics and public service has become a more attractive career option to an increasing number of young people, if one can get through the bureaucratic barriers in the way. During Obama's presidential campaign, the change and hope he stood for galvanised what turned out to be the youngest voting turnout in American history. Analysts speak of "Obama's youth movement" and how the youth vote played a decisive role in his victory. The interest swept the globe, including Africa, where Obama's race and heritage captured the imagination of many. Students and graduates are also said to have played a major role in the SA April 2009 elections. Representatives across the board addressed the youth directly in their campaigns, and at the Youth Day celebrations President Jacob Zuma thanked the youth for their role in his victory. But has SA's youth really caught the passion for service their counterparts in the US have, and are there the same opportunities to get involved? Warwick Chapman, Democratic Alliance (DA) ward councillor in eThekwini municipality, says the DA is seeing a lot of youth interest, but it isn't representative. "There is a lack of young women. There are many women involved as volunteers and in operations, but they don't cross to public representation," he says. Mohammed Surty, a UCT graduate who served on the UCT SRC says: "From my experience most of those who studied commerce ended up in the private sector, because they offered more lucrative packages. It is thosewho studied the social sciences who tend to go into the public sector because it's more aligned to what they studied." "The SRC president from my time has since left and joined [Zimbabwe's] Movement for Democratic Change. He's now the national deputy spokesman for the party. The 2006 SRC secretary-general Yershin Pillay has since got involved with the SACP and the Youth Communist League. He is now the national deputy chaiman for the new National Youth Development Agency," says Surty. Though interest in civil service is clearly present in student and graduate circles, human resources experts believe the slow recruitment process and lower earning potential of government jobs is a barrier to getting involved. Xtreme HR's JP Pretorius says they find there are many people in the government seeking opportunities within the private sector as a result of perceived better career and personal growth opportunities. "People are still more focused on the private sector as a result of better earning potential," says Pretorius. Despite these barriers, those aspiring to a career in politics can find an increasing number of opportunities to get involved with various youth movements on their campuses. The ANC Youth League describes its key objective as the "creation of a united, nonracial, nonsexist and democratic society" and invites all who share its view to join the organisation. "We want people to serve actively in their branches," says spokesman Bryan Sokutu. The DA's Aimee Franklin says her party has witnessed the rise of "quite a few notable emerging leaders in the DA who have done very well in a short space of time and who began their careers on campus". This includes Geordin Hill-Lewis a former SRC member who, at just 21 years old, serves as Helen Zille's private secretary. Congress of the People's (Cope) chairman at the University of Cape Town Uhuru Malebo notes that despite a resurgent interest in politics of late, when it comes to students actually getting involved, apathy remains a core challenge. "In my experience, students regard political involvement as a futile activity that is undertaken by individuals who have blind loyalty to their mother-body political parties, and I wanted to change that," he explains. "The students we target are dynamic, intellectual and passionate individuals who seek to bring about a political culture that is coherent with the values of the student body," he says. The African Christian Democratic Party's Lizzy Ndalana says her party has a culture of mentoring and grooming young people to become better employees and professionals who can compete globally. "We believe in growing and nurturing talent and we are committed to skills development so future generations, whether in politics or any other field, can best contribute to the country." Xanthea Limberg of the Independent Democrats (ID) maintains that young people occupy some of the most powerful positions in the ID. "MP Haniff Hoosen, the party's secretary-general, is 36 years old and was still a youth (at 35) when he was elected to his position," she points out. "Our party's policy is driven by the youth. MP Lance Greyling (36) is the policy convener and was still a youth at the time of his election. ID president Patricia de Lille also enjoys working closely with our youth members." The Freedom Front Plus's Francois Slabbert says: "We also look for people who can articulate issues and who can mobilise others, while obviously other crucial leadership qualities such as integrity, honesty and the like also apply." Though political studies seems an obvious subject choice for aspiring politicians, it is not essential as far as SA's political landscape is concerned. Participation and understanding a party's policies, with an ability to mobilise and create support is crucial, and these count for far more than the qualification a student emerges with at the end of his or her degree. For students seeking a political career, the same can be said to all regardless of political affiliation: a political career starts with involvement - the sooner you begin, the better for your career.