–claims people were hiding in cars

FACED with a visibly lackluster turnout at his party’s campaign launch last Sunday, A Partnership For National Unity (APNU) leader Aubrey Norton, in a desperate attempt to spin the underwhelming support, pointed fingers at the governing People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), even claiming that supporters were hiding in their cars.
Despite aerial footage clearly showing the lukewarm turnout at the campaign launch, Norton, during a virtual press conference on Friday last, defensively dismissed the concerns, claiming that fear had kept supporters away. When asked by this publication about the noticeable absence of youth support, especially when compared to the party’s 2015 and 2020 campaigns, Norton deflected.
According to him, “There were endless young people. It is true that there were big people, and there were mature people…”,
Norton, who has faced mounting pressure over his leadership and the party’s dwindling support, offered a peculiar explanation, that public servants sat hidden in their cars out of fear of the current government.
“There were a lot of young public servants who sat in their cars, because they don’t want to be exposed, so that the PPP can go after them,” he said.
Norton also noted: “It is true that in society, young people tend not to be involved in the political system as they should…”
However, this has not been the case for the governing PPP/C, as its youth arm, the Progressive Youth Organisation (PYO), has welcomed a continuous increase in membership. Over 600 new members from Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) were registered, while in Region One (Barima-Waini), there were over 900 new members.
At the party’s youth conference in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), more than 3,000 youths were in attendance, and over 5,000 of them were in attendance at Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara)’s event.
PPP General Secretary Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo has emphasised, time and again, that the party isn’t just talking about youth involvement, but is actively demonstrating it. In fact, both President Irfaan Ali and Jagdeo began their political journeys through the PYO. Previously, Jagdeo projected that the PYO’s membership would surpass 10,000.
He had said, “I’ve seen young people come to us with an energy I’ve never seen in my political life. Even in the days when we were fighting the APNU dictatorship, I don’t think we had that energy we’re seeing today. And they are of every race, gender and religion.”