Mahtab Haider

Voters aged between 18-25 years comprise nearly a third of the new electorate. Another third (47 million) of the country’s population are below the age of 15. So, any alliance that speaks a language that young adults understand could swing elections in their favour this time and for decades to come.

Realising this perhaps, the Awami League dedicate their ‘Vision-2021’ manifesto ‘to the young generation.’ The BNP too make a play for the gallery with a section on the jubasamaj in theirs. But a closer reading of the manifestos reveals how hopelessly out of sync they are with the issues affecting youth today. No surprise too since their venal power struggles keep young people out of politics, making them ageing parties in a nation of young people.

Despite the faltering education system, both parties seem to think that IT education in schools is the silver bullet – just as successive governments once believed that a submarine cable to the WWW would magically transform us into a software exporting nation. While the BNP promises easy terms for business loans for young entrepreneurs, a university degree — a privilege of the few — is a pre-requisite. The AL’s proposal of job guarantees is more mainstream but relies on charity rather than individual enterprise.

Lack of security and high crime rates, as well as the rising incidence of drug use, are some of the major issues affecting youth that get little attention in the manifestos. The economic, social and academic potential of young women, in particular, is greatly affected by insecurity. While both parties pledge to reduce crime, the crime-politics nexus looks likely to hold or get stronger in coming years.

Without representative political leadership within party ranks, young people seem to be among the most beleaguered vote banks in this year’s elections. To rectify this, the parties could have at least pledged to gradually allow a younger generation of leaders from the grassroots assume positions of power within the party structure. They haven’t. They want the votes, they don’t want to change.