Our Readers' Opinions
October 21, 2014

ULP and elections

Tue October 21, 2014

Editor: Whenever the general election is called it would be an interesting one. There are many who feel that ULP would return to office for a fourth consecutive term, while there are others who feel the ULP is going down and so will lose the general elections.{{more}}

A good survey would show that many youths are behind the ULP, mainly as a result of the Education Revolution. However, that will not be enough to return the ULP to office for a fourth term. If we are honest in our survey, we would also realize that throughout the country many ULP supporters are dissatisfied with their representatives and caretakers. For, there is an island-wide neglect of its supporters. You can say what you want about NDP; they always make sure that their supporters are taken care of and given the first preference. Not so with this ULP administration. There are far too many complaints of diehard supporters being neglected and taken for granted.

Many of the supporters who feel neglected and taken for granted will never support the NDP, but rather stay home, as was the case in 2010. A careful analysis of 2010 elections would show that in the Leeward and town seats, Labour lost because many of its supporters stayed home. Yet it seems like the ULP have not learnt. They must act swiftly on this area to gain the confidence of its supporters. The three Leeward seats are shaky, with North Leeward having the best chance due to the intelligence, dedication and organized structure of the young intelligent Carlos James.

Come to think of it, the candidates would play a very important part. The choice of candidates is important. There are some candidates that do not seem trustworthy. Many of them are playing into the hands of the NDP. This, the party leader must examine and deal with urgently.

Having said all the above, all is not lost; ULP stands a good chance of returning to office if the leader and secretary make some drastic plans and address these concerns immediately. After all, it is bread on the table that matters. The international airport does not hold the key as it did many years ago. Also we, the members, are sometimes our greatest enemy, in that many of us are downright greedy and would seek to have things we don’t need simply because we support the party. When we don’t get what we want even if we don’t need it, we would stay home. Also many seem to think that they must get something personal for them to continue to vote the ULP. We even sometimes fight against each other, which in effect will cause some persons to be discouraged.

Good luck to ULP. We cannot afford an NDP government, for it will mean disaster in this country.

A ULP family member