Long queues formed at the polling station at Signal Hill Primary School in Mahikeng. (Belinda Pheto/News24)
- Moeti Setologo, 70, and his wife were among those who arrived early at the polling station at Signal Hill Primary School.
- They, like many others, brought their own chairs and were prepared for a long wait.
- On this day, first-time voters like 26-year-old Ongkabetse Mokwena voiced their desire for political change.
Moeti Setologo, 70, was one of several elderly people who arrived before the polling station at Signal Hill Primary School in Mahikeng opened.
“I got here early because I wanted to avoid waiting in long lines. I know the polling station will be busy as many people will be using it,” he said.
The polling station is one of the largest in Mahikeng, with over 3,000 registered voters.
The walk to the station was a family event for Sethogo and his wife, Kevadililengu.
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They had walked less than two kilometres from their homes to the polling stations, where they had prepared their own chairs and waited their turn to vote.
Setruhogo said:
I was happy to be able to vote again. It is a right we can enjoy today only because so many people lost their lives. It is something we should not take for granted.
The morning queue was mostly filled with older people, but as the day went on, younger people and first-time voters slowly began to join the queue.
Ongkabetse Mokwena, 26, unemployed, said she was voting for the first time because she wanted a new party to be formed because the ANC had let young people down.
“We are unemployed, there are no jobs, we have no services, so for the first time in my life I am taking it upon myself to get the ANC removed from government,” he said.
Mokwena said he had not yet decided who he would vote for, but that he would not be voting for the ANC.
Elias Modibedi, another voter at the same polling station, told News24:
“I am in parliament to have meaningful dialogue with other leaders and vote for leaders who will bring change in this area. We have a lot of unemployed graduates, we have no running water, we have poor roads. These are basic things that we should not complain about.
Voters patiently waited their turn to cast their vote.
By midday, the average wait time at the station was more than three hours.
Entrepreneurs took advantage of the opportunity to sell snacks and food.