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Is WIN performance a paradigm shift?
Dear Editor,
I would like to congratulate WIN on their historic performance in the recent elections. Their achievements are remarkable on many levels.
It is a first, where a new party has been able to challenge the hegemony of the two dominant political parties. Not only did they challenge the status quo but have become the official opposition in the process. This has never happened before.
Since inception, elections have been contested along racial lines with one Indo-Centric party the PPP drawing its base from Indo-Guyanese while the PNC Afro-Centric base consists of Afro-Guyanese. Polarisation and race-based voting was the norm. What WIN has demonstrated, that they were able to break/crack that model whereby a leader of Indian ethnicity of a political party was able to garner huge support and vote from Afo-Guyanese. Now this is significant. What this demonstrates that there is a shift in attitudes and a change in how people vote with more willingness to depart from old stereotypes. This is a good development. Before I begin to sound euphoric, I would stress this is only a start and a point in time phenomenon. Raced based voting and racial prejudices are by no means eliminated or dead.
In order, to build on this breakthrough WIN will have to demonstrate their capabilities in parliament as the opposition. To a large extent the quality of their candidates as politicians are not known. While this may seem as a weakness, it is also an opportunity to impress on the public that they are capable of governing. Furthermore, they need to connect with young voters as they represent the future and have different experiences and worldview than prior generations.
It is instructive that they build on this opportunity given to them by the voters and not squander it. Once again, congratulations on this historic performance. The Guyanese public needs new political options with fresh ideas and energy to build and deliver an equitable society. Dismantling of the old status quo is a step forward.
Yours truly,
Regards
R. Misir
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