Young people and politics

A recent election survey by The Sunday Times indicated that while the Labour Party has a healthy lead over the Nationalist Party, it seems to be failing to win over our youngest voters, those aged 18-24 years.

The more Malta embraces European secular issues the more the PN is distancing itself from the people- Joseph Vella Bonnici

An editorial of The Times (July 25) remarked that this is surprising and concludes by asking should “the soundness or otherwise of a party’s overall policies count as well?” Electoral policies do count but so does a party’s track record and its perceived ability to implement them.

Making generalisations on a single survey is dangerous as present-day behaviour is too complex and inconsistent and increasingly renders pigeon-holing less meaningful. This is the experience of marketers who are opting to focus more on behavioural targeting and segmentation rather than age groups. So we need to proceed with caution because other surveys may lead to different conclusions.

The 18-24 age group forms part of Generation Y (also known as the Millennials). We, the baby boomers, should know something about them because they are our children. Unfortunately, our view about our children tends to be conditioned by our expectation that they have the same values and attitudes as us.

All along, we have sought to make life easy for them; sophisticated toys and gadget kept them engaged while we worked overtime. Our children graduated from MP3 players to computers to mobiles. The Millennials believe the world to be a ‘global village’, where consumers reign supreme. They have been taught that the state is bad and that there is no better alternative to the ‘invisible hand’ of the marketplace. They are cynic about politicians who accuse each other of being power-grabbing, corrupt money-mongers. They question society’s hypocrisy regarding drugs when these are practically sold over the counter. They are worried about terrorism and global warming; two other black marks of their age.

Now their mindset is being seriously challenged by the failures of globalisation and the failure of the banking sector, which is leading to a prolonged economic crisis.

Many Millennials choose to continue living in the comfort of their parents’ home, which shields them from the headache of having to pay for daily necessities, such as food and electricity. They understand that the purchasing power of their family is falling and they too are getting used to switching off the lights.

Like Peter Pan, our children are hesitant to transit into adulthood. They opt to have a tattoo but decide to hide it. Research indicates that Generation Y is ambitious and achievement oriented, even though they are accused of lacking commitment and work ethic. They seek to balance work, leisure and personal relationships. The big divide of this age group is not between progressives and traditionalists but between a few affluent achievers and the many that have to content themselves with poorly paid jobs.

The latter can no longer aspire to owe their own home and rely heavily on their credit cards to make ends meet. Many are reluctant and unable to make longer-term commitments.

Party politics are not considered hip. Over the last 20 years or so, the PN captured the aspirations of successive teens ‘n’ twenties. It successfully projected itself as being smart and cosmopolitan and the PL as being geek, violent and ‘ħamalli’. The PN’s spin ridiculed the Mintoff era for its ‘no Mars’ policy, ignoring the significant social welfare and economic growth rate achieved. The PL’s resistance to EU membership is inconceivable to our younger generations.

Generation Y is waking up to a new reality. The PL’s young leadership understands marketing and is beating the PN at its own game. GonziPN continues to shoot itself in the foot and prolonged infighting is revealing the true colours of the PN: a heavily divided party clinging to power at all costs.

Far from being a liberal party, the PN is an organisation in the grip of an arch-conservative clique. The more Malta embraces European secular values, the more the PN is distancing itself from the people, as evidenced by its stance over divorce, IVF and cohabitation.

More youths are rediscovering politics in the belief that, if they want a better future, they must actively work for it. They are realising that the only way to change the way that we do politics is through active participation. This age group is bound to be a main target of both parties for the coming elections.

Will new voters be captivated by the PN’s scaremongering campaign? Or will they trust the PL with its positive strategy? Malta will make it not if it looks back in fear but if it looks forward in hope with a commitment to build upon and improve what we have today.

I am sure that Generation Y will take up the challenge and discover that social justice, accountability and meritocracy are the foundations for sustainable progress. Our youth is to be given the necessary space to seek self-fulfilment while caring for the community.

fms18@onvol.net