The 18-35 Voters

Michael Vishnu Singh

The ruling party is confident that it can scare its supporters by referring to the days when the PNC ruled Guyana. It will try to depict the main opposition grouping as PNC. It is not going to be as easy as it thinks. There is no PNC on the ballot. There is no palm tree. Even though APNU is dominated by the PNC it is clear that there are other elements in the grouping. Also the leader of APNU while from the PNC is not the leader of that party. He is not connected to the directorate of the party because he has never held a political position.

What is going to be difficult is to make an important part of the voters imagine what life was like in the era of PNC government. Most of us do not recall clearly national events before the age of 15 unless we are precocious. So all of the voters between the ages of 18 and 35 do not have any coherent idea of what life was like back then.

Also this age group will most likely turn out and vote. Those in their twenties are concerned about jobs and earning ability. Those in their thirties are concerned about education for their children and security for their families. These two voting groups as well as the ones in their forties are looking to the future. They want to be convinced that the national leaders are firm decision makers, clear headed and capable of analyzing complex situations quickly.

The candidate for the current ruling group does not strike young voters as someone who fits this profile. Trying to scare them with stories of the past will not work as they will most likely compare these stories to the experiences they are having or have heard about.

APNU has focused heavily on its plans to invest in education. This appeals to this section of the voting public. This part of Guyana’s population holds the secret to our nation’s success. In the 21^st century what is moving nations forward is their brain power. If we look at the US over the last 20 years it has leaped forward on the brain power of the people behind Apple, Microsoft, Face book and Google –to name a few.

Our current leaders are failing to understand that investing in our youth can earn us billions. The past is gone. The future is yet to come. Our present scenario in Guyana is vague, incoherent and confused. The youth feels this. They will not be scared. They will be attracted to the clear, precise and dynamic plans of APNU. David Granger and his team are attuned to the power within our youth. On November 28 the youth will deliver a resounding confirmation of this attunement.