Why bother to vote, Phikwe asks

Selebi-Phikwe is on its knees PIC: KEOAGILE BONANG
Selebi-Phikwe is on its knees PIC: KEOAGILE BONANG

SELEBI-PHIKWE: The unimpressive voter registration numbers here are hardly surprising as the north-eastern town enters its third year of economic collapse, amidst the explosion of social ills such as crime and overall despondency.

Phikwe continues to battle the lingering ghost-town status brought on by the October 2016 closure of its economic mainstay, BCL Mine. While the Independent Electoral Commission is still fine-tuning the count, officials have already confirmed that voter registrations are drastically down in Selebi-Phikwe.

“During our meetings with them, some of the residents told us they could not register because they were not sure they would still be in Phikwe next year (during the general elections),” says IEC election officer, Sadie Ontiretse.

Editor's Comment
Depression is real; let's take care of our mental health

It is not uncommon in this part of the world for parents to actually punish their children when they show signs of depression associating it with issues of indiscipline, and as a result, the poor child will be lashed or given some kind of punishment. We have had many suicide cases in the country and sadly some of the cases included children and young adults. We need to start looking into issues of mental health with the seriousness it...

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