Dear Editor,
My conversations with people all over the country over the last two weeks reveal rising political apathy. People have become disenchanted with most politicians who are increasingly being perceived as conmen interested in enriching themselves and their families and close friends rather than in providing for the genuine welfare of the people and the nation. People don’t believe politicians care for them any more and they have lost faith in political parties to effectuate change to better the lives of the masses. The rich are getting richer while the poor are getting poorer, they complain.
This political indictment applies to all of the parties in parliament and their representatives. The greatest disappointment was expressed for the AFC. People had extremely high expectations of this party and their expectations have now been deflated. They said they had expected it to be the party with a difference that would hold “the balance of power” holding the PPP accountable, but at the samtime moderating and influencing the behaviour of the PNC. Instead, people (those who voted for it and others PPP and PNC and those who did not vote as well) complain that the
AFC took the wrong side on several crucial issues, pieces of legislation, and on the budget. The party’s support has virtually evaporated among former supporters of the PPP and it has not made any gains from the PNC since the November 28 election. The party will have to re-orient its position on many issues if it is to recover its lost support.
Surprisingly, many who voted for the AFC (and even some who cast ballots for PPP and APNU-PNC) , particularly in Regions 3, 4, 5 and 10 express an affinity with the Justice For All Party (JFAP) saying it may do a better job than AFC in holding “the balance” in parliament and “moderating” the behaviour of both major parties. The JFAP leader, Mr CN Sharma remains the most well-liked and popular (non-) politician in the country with none of the other political leaders even coming close to his popularity. His likeability comes from his talk show on CNS TV Channel 6 and his ‘people’ approach on the ground. People see him as far more genuine and caring for the ordinary people than the regular run-of-the-mill, mainstream, self-serving politicians. But whether those who are fed up with the current crop of self-interested politicians and the large pool among the apathetic non-voters will swing towards him can only be tested in an election. One finding I obtained in conversation with people is that Sharma made a significant difference for APNU in last November’s election to deny the PPP a majority. But people have lost faith in the parties and politicians to transform their lives. The politicians need to address peoples’ concerns and issues (and the AFC needs to hold the balance instead of playing vengeful politics) or else there will be an increase in the withdrawal syndrome that is now plaguing our nation.
Yours faithfully,
Vishnu Bisram
