Simply being young has never been enough – youth leaders
TWO YOUTH leaders have rejected and described the notion as misguided and uninformed that age is a critical factor in reaching the youth population.
A debate has again been stirred about the capacity of the leaders of both political parties to connect with the younger generation – Dr Peter Phillips, president of the People’s National Party (PNP) being 67 years old, and Andrew Holness, prime minister and Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) leader, being 44.
Phillips was, on Sunday, declared president of the PNP by acclamation at a special delegates’ conference held at the National Arena in Kingston.
Krystal Tomlinson, media and communications consultant, believes that wooing young people will depend heavily on the political parties having robust youth organisations, rather than the age of its leaders.
“It’s really not the party leader’s job to inspire the confidence of young people and bring them on board in terms of becoming part of the voting public. That’s why each of those political parties has a youth arm. So I would be more concerned if your youth arm is led by somebody who is 67, rather than being overly concerned about the age of the party leader,” she told The Gleaner.
“For you to have a real impact, you have to go into their (youth) spaces, and I don’t see either of the two (Phillips and Holness), on their own, being able to convince a youth population, without a strong, and robust youth arm, that can literally use the words that young people use.”
She was quick to point out that she believes that both parties have youth structures that work, but noted that they only work for those who are already converted. As such, the 26-year-old believes there is need for both organisations to initiate strategic, compelling and modern methods to involve young people.