Standing in the cold rainy weather for over five hours the dedicated
audience, made up of mostly youths chanted and raved to almost every
word uttered from the mouth of the candidates at the event dubbed
"Vision for St. Patrick's".
From wigs to footwear, the young and not so old clad in yellow apparel,
easily disguised the surrounding darkness, illuminating the entire
community.
Members of the NDC Youth Group cheer
"I have never before seen so many youths gathered in St. Patrick's for
an event, and this tells us that the NDC has undoubtedly created
history in Grenada for the overwhelming interest and involvement of the
youths in politics which we have seen manifested throughout this
campaign", said a gleeful Pemba Braveboy, one of the main organizers of
the event.
Braveboy, herself just entering adulthood, is now a medical doctor.
She like many of her peers believes youths in Grenada are now neglected
and are being given a false sense of hope by the current administration.
Headliners for the event, Joseph Gilbert (candidate for St Patrick's
West) and Tillman Thomas (MP for St Patrick's East) shared similar
sentiments.
"Several persons have failed to recognize that successful youths build
great nations and I will do everything in my power to ensure that the
youths of Grenada and especially St. Patrick East are not neglected
anymore", said Gilbert, the NDC candidate for St. Patrick East.
Gilbert, a civil engineer, has assured the people of St. Patrick's that
when he is elected as their Member of Parliament, structures will be
put in place to create a center for training and development for youths
in the constituency.
Ingrid Jackson, the youthful prolific speaker, contesting in a seat in
St. Georges North West challenged the youths to use their power to
improve their future.
"The time has come for you to elect politicians who can bring about
change and hold them responsible for their actions", said Jackson to
shouts of approval from the crowd.
Jackson will be contesting the seat against Member of Parliament Prime Minister Keith Mitchell in the upcoming general election.
The man with better than even odds of winning the next election Tillman
Thomas unveiled a bag of goodies he will have prepared for the people
of St. Patrick's when he becomes Prime Minister.
Thomas, the MP for St. Patrick's West, assured farmers that the
agriculture sector will be one of the best in the region under his
administration.
Among his plans are the expansion of nutmeg production, the
introduction of new crops such as onion and cassava and the widescale
cultivation of herbal plants like lemon grass.
"I do not see the reason for us to be importing cassava from the United
States, when we have the necessary resources here in Grenada to produce
it for ourselves", said the NDC leader who is also concerned that areas
such as marketing and proper storage for farming produce have been
neglected.
Tillman gives a bounce
Thomas also expressed concern that some farmers are still reeling from
the losses they sustained during the passage of Hurricane Ivan and
Emily due to the non-existence of crop insurance to subsidize losses.
Under his government, he said, farmers will be provided with proper
insurance to offset these expected natural disasters.
"When I look at the health center in the constituency, I feel so
ashamed brothers and sisters, but under my leadership, that health
center will be renovated especially the maternity section," Thomas
assured.
He also spoke of plans to renovate the Bathway attraction center with
the assistance of experts to make it more comfortable for locals and
visitors.
All eyes are now set on Carriacou where the NDC will be staging another mass rally this Saturday.
