It
was an era of advocacy, it was a period of activism, it was a moment of sponsorship,
it was a minute of support, it was an epoch of youth interventions, it was an
age of sponsorship, it was a full-stop to child marriages, it was the death of
male chauvinism, it was a tombstone unveiling ceremony for gender based
violence, it was the Revelation of women’s inferiority complex and happy
birthday to their self-belief. In summary, it was a time when women, children
and youth rights campaign was at its orgasm.
Be
it that you haven’t heard about this human rights watchdog in mention, then you
need to be updated, that one true organization is Youth Net and counselling
(YONECO), Its Tithandizane helpline center has a free toll line with which
helpline councilors respond to all the calls from clients and victims of abuse.
You can pop into YONECO premises on a familiarization tour, but you won’t see the
councilors vagabonding the premises like a lost sheep in wilderness deprived of
wolfs, standing at the edges of the cafeteria for a viewpoint won’t do favors.
Telepathy will only betray for the councilors routinely work indoors for the sake
of a tête-à-tête mediated environment, and that’s always best for guidance and
counselling in the long run.
If
you were to see the councilors, you would find a presentable, decent person
with a helpful look, pondering hard on how best to respond to questions
rendered by clients. Often times, the councilors will hold the phone receiver
on one hand and a pen on the other hand. The men clad in long decent shots and
shirts that have a bowtie, the women also slay it executively unless it’s on a
Fry day.
The
watchdog (YONECO) is present wherever human rights are being infringed or
deprived, it’s always omnipresent in its catchment areas and thus speaking of
districts like Nkhatabay, Rumphi, Salima, Mchinji, Mangochi, Zomba, Chikhwawa,
Ntchisi, Ntcheu, Machinga, Mulanje, Likoma,
Nkhotakota and Phalombe at times.
People
who have a liking for the radio developed an interest to keep a keen eye on the
name YONECO FM (YFM) and doors are left wide open to receive anybody who is
dying to place their feet on the majestic vicinities of YFM. A visit by an audience full of praises
causes a YONECO journalist to smile in appreciation and that elevates their
work energy going forward. A woman who has spent two years and six months
admiring the Golden voiced Olivier Gondwe , dreaming of setting
her eyes on the award winning ,titus Linzie, causes the journalists
in mention to keep up the good work in progress.
It’s
no cause for pity that journalists have one day to rest out of the seven days
believed of making a week, for their work is a calling. Although their work
terms and conditions indicate room for leave days, their never on a hundred
percent holiday, they do not worry that they are in the wrong profession as
long as they are informing, civic education and entertaining the general
public, but most of all they have excellent working conditions and privileges.
Rumor
is it that journalist are luxurious people, but journalist belonging to this
watchdog are different. All that lingers in their freedom fighting mindsets is
rights advocacy. On Monday the journalist attend to staff briefing meeting
where issues are looked at from an institutional point of view, Tuesdays to
Sundays are for advocacy, news reporting, and radio presentation, outside
broadcast and field work.
After
paternity and maternal holidays the journalist works day in and day out to
backlog time lost and wasted away over the leave holidays. No wonder the
aftermath of maternity holiday makes one feel like a newly employee. The
journalists have for so long been used as a weapon in fighting for the rights
of special groups of people though modern times has created a breed of social
media loving journalist who would spend a moment of forever twitting about
their luxurious shoes instead of utilizing such platforms to convey messages of
sexual reproductive health and rights. But thanks heavens the watchdog has a
different breed of reporter’s and presenters, they kind that uses ICT tools in communicating
SRHR issues.
Were
you to ask a journalist what makes them feel sorry, they would tell you one
laughable thing, that they always feel sorry for seedless watermelons, if you
ask them why?, they would respond to you that what if they wanted to have
babies.
Working
tirelessly in a boardroom full of files, accountant officers will patiently sit
on the desk waiting for officers who went out on field to liquidate and submit
their field reports so that they file such information and keep it in their
safe keeping whilst awaiting audit. The finance manager will pass by the desks
of each and every accounts officer all just to make sure work is being done at
the desired expectation and right pace. The manager will pass by the next desk,
where a man is enjoyably wondering when next will he go out for field work, and
that tells a story, a story of a watchdog with a lot of opportunities to offer.
He stops by
the desk of the young man who is counting every minute, and loathing the hours,
the finance managers laughs in shame knowing that YONECO is a service delivery organization.
Sitting on an office chair, is a happy
employee of the watchdog with a pen that is scribbling what your eyes are
founding merry in.
