The Leadership of the PPM-MLAs Anthony Eden (1st back left) Leader of the Opposition Kurt Tibbetts (4th back left), Alden McLaughlin (5th back left) join with members of the Young Progressives.

With youth movements often being the weight that tilts elections, the opposition People’s Progressive Movement (PPM) has renewed this strategy with the resuscitation of the Young Progressives, the youth arm of the party.

According to MLA for George Town and PPM member, Alden McLaughlin, the Young Progressives were founded in 2004 and were instrumental in the victory of 2005, but had become inactive during the last election.

“We are in solidarity with the Young Progressives since the youth have played a huge role to our success in the past.

“The young people have approached us and it is a welcome move. We shall include them in the top decision making of the party,” Mr McLaughlin said.

The MLA said that he was happy with the 25 members who had started the Young Progressives since they would bring a fresh perspective and energy to the party.

“Our constitution has provisions for a youth movement and a women’s movement, and these are automatically given a place on the board,” the PPM member noted.

“Their views and agenda would be part of what we take up.

Speaking to the press, the president of Young Progressives, Denise Miller, said that she was happy “as a long time supporter of the PPM, I am honoured to now be formally accepted as a member and the newly elected President of the Young Progressives Movement”.

Ms Miller who introduced herself as the eldest child of Patricia Stoll and the only child of Dean Miller, said that by birth she was an ‘East-enna’ (East-ender) and by lineage a Nor’sida (North Sider), much to the amusement of the audience.

“The Young Progressives, unfortunately, had fizzled out by this past election period, and I feel that the PPM had lost their edge in that respect,” she said.

She said that, currently, divisions within the country had run deeper, and the feeling of dread washed over her, making her recall the stark difference when PPM was in power.

The president said that since the last elections, the country has since become divided, and its people were yearning for a feeling of peace.

“With the help of the Young Progressives we can achieve that feeling,” she noted.

Present members of her steering board include First Vice President Robert Roberts, 2nd Vice President Enna McField, Treasurer Kareem Rankine, Secretary Jessica Jackson and Public Relations Officer Selkirk Watler.

“I think it is important to point out that we have an equal number of men and women sitting on our board. This was not by design, it was by chance. I say that to say, that through the efforts of groups such as the PPM who empower women the Young Progressives were able to select a board equally and without favour on the subconscious level.

“As we move forward over the next four years and towards the next election we will promote the PPM as the better choice, we will encourage our peers to examine the substantive differences between the PPM and the UDP, and we will implore them to be involved,”she said.

The Young Progressives hope to have a social this Friday at 2:00 pm at the Public Beach in East End.