PPP/C sowed the seeds of disdain for young people’s concerns

Jan 31, 2015 News

“It will reap a bitter harvest at the next elections,”

By Kiana Wilburg
Leader of the Opposition, David Granger, placed in the spotlight yesterday, the importance of youth participation during the upcoming May 11 election, as well as the fact that the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) has failed miserably in addressing those challenges facing the younger generation.

( From left) Opposition Leader David Granger, GYSM Chairman, Ryan Belgrave, GYSM Executive Member, Nia Phill-Gonsalves

As a consequence, he said “The PPP/C has sowed the seeds of disdain for young people’s concerns and will reap a bitter harvest at the next elections.”
As he made this statement among others at his press conference which was held at his Hadfield Street Office, Granger also had the support of two youths from the Guyana Youth and Student Movement (GYMS); Executive Member Nia Phill-Gonsalves and Chairman Ryan Belgrave.
The Leader of A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) said that the outcome of the forthcoming General and Regional elections will be determined largely by the way that young people vote. He premised this declaration on the fact that youths and dependent children constitute 69 percent of the national population.
The politician said that the current administration has treated this large section of the population with disdain and that it has completely ignored young people’s legitimate aspirations for a coherent national youth policy which would give them hope for the future.
He said too, that the government “cynically dawdled” while the rest of the world celebrated the International Year of Youth: Dialogue and Mutual Understanding (IYY) during August 2010 and August 2011.
Granger emphasized that young people are inevitably, the nation’s future but they face challenges. Some of these he highlighted to be the large number of school dropouts, the unavailability of new job opportunities, the huge prison population (of which young people are said to comprise 75 percent), the spate of suicides among adolescents and the rising number of teenage pregnancies. These he said are all signs of a desperate social predicament.
The Opposition Leader however, focused on two major areas where he felt that the government failed the young generation, the first being on the educational front. In this regard, Granger told the media that the public schools are producing an increasing number of illiterate and innumerate young people.
He said that failure rates at the annual National Grade Six Assessment examinations are “astronomically” high. The APNU leader then referred to reports from the Ministry of Education which said that about 6,000 children drop out of the primary and secondary schools annually. The chronic crises and the current controversy at the University of Guyana he posited are examples of the administration’s lack of concern for students and their education.
The second area of failure he raised was the issue of unemployment. He reminded that this central issue is one that the current administration has neglected as to date there are no measures to deal with the massive job crisis and its dangerous consequences.
“Children who do not complete their elementary education satisfactorily will find it difficult to get jobs as adults. The majority of young graduates unable to find employment, remain under or unemployed, or join the throng of thousands who emigrate every year. Young people suffer most, owing to the fact that the school leavers are inexperienced and have a long wait before they find their first job,” he added.
On the matter of suicide, Granger posited that normally, happy people do not kill themselves. He mentioned that official data would indicate that suicide became a serious public health issue in Guyana only within the last decade.
The Parliamentarian reminded that it is ranked seventh of the ten major causes of death. Also alarming he said is that research also shows that suicide became the leading cause of death among young people between ages 15 to 24 and the third leading cause of death among those within the age range of 25 to 44.
The Opposition Leader believes that young people will not vote for the PPP because the party in government has failed them. He confidently foretold that Guyana’s youths will vote for the APNU. He said that this will occur because the partnership will improve the standard of education, ensure their personal safety and introduce a genuine national youth policy that will guarantee a good life for all.
Chairman of the GYSM, Ryan Belgrave, after endorsing the leader’s statements, added that young people wake up every morning to a society of hopelessness created by the government.
“This government is one that lacks vision, oversight and leadership capacity to deal with our concerns. Young people, the forgotten majority, are crying out for a new breath of life… We seek leadership inspired by the ideals for building a democratic nation where fear is banished; a government that practices inclusivity and promotes national unity and at this time we are encouraging the youth to respect their vote. APNU assures the youth of Guyana of a good life, a society that holds youth development as the highest priority,” he expressed.
His GYSM colleague, Nia Phill-Gonsalves stated that young people across the world have made significant changes in their countries, and in Guyana, the scenario is no different.
“Yesterday (Thursday) at UG the young people were tired of the mediocre level of education they have been receiving and they are tired of the lack of technology and the lack of books in their library and tired of the 20th century library and because of their tiredness, they decided to embark on a revolution…I want to warn the PPP/C… don’t go to young people with what happened during the PNC time, don’t go to them with what the PPP/C has done because we don’t see anything… all you have is a track record of broken promises …”