LALIT Electoral Campaign “on Course”
05.12.2014
Rajni Lallah, speaking on LALIT’s electoral campaign, said that the central point is that our campaign has been clear, coherent and consistent throughout. Even though it is a “snap election”, we in LALIT, she said, were nevertheless well prepared for the challenge.”
“We were the first party to publish a full program,” she said. “At the beginning of October, we launched it in a Press Conference. On 20 October, we announced our strategy as concerns candidates. We said we would stand as an Opposition, and we therefore announced 20+, but less than 30 candidates would in due course, be fielded. And we have fielded 28 candidates, as promised,” she said.
“We have ran a campaign around the themes and issues on which we already do political work, and getting a voice in Parliament will give a broader scope to our politics.” One of our main campaign tools has been our “nation-wide bulletin” with an analysis of the stakes in the election as well as an outline of our program. “It also includes photos and details on all our candidates,” she said, holding a copy up. “We have also used posters, in different formats and sizes, posted up all over the country. We have distributed leaflets from early on, in the campaign,” she said, showing one. “And we have also, for the first time, used our YouTube channel, our website and our DVDs about our program, as part of our campaign,” she added.
“It has been a national campaign, with its geographical structure built around bus stations, around work-sites, and also around neighbourhoods, where we have done both door-to-door campaigning and meetings.” She said that it has not just been “constituency-by-constituency on local issues”, but a solid national campaign, linking neighbourhoods to the bigger picture. “Until today, there are still many people undecided, because they are sick of the existing parties and are seeking something different,” she said.
“Our campaign has been marked by people coming to us and saying they want to join LALIT, both for the campaign and for ongoing political work. This,” she said, “is new.” She said the LALIT campaign was and is politically “coherent”, unlike almost all the others.
RADA KISTNASAMY, PRESIDING
Rajni Lallah was speaking at a LALIT Press Conference held on Friday 5 December to evaluate the campaign until today, and to give LALIT’s “modord” for elections. Rada Kistnasamy, presiding, said that we are meeting the Press to say how our campaign has gone exactly as it was planned, and with an excellent response in all the different areas that we have campaigned in.
Rada Kistnasamy asked Alain Ah-Vee to give LALIT’s appreciation of the campaign of the other parties.
LABOUR-MMM and LEPEP
Alain Ah-Vee, commenting the campaigns of the Labour-MMM Alliance and the Alliance Lepep of MSM-PMSD-Collendavelloo, said that with 4-5 days left of the campaign, they were both having difficulty remaining coherent. The Labour Party and MMM, in particular, have had the difficulty of being “the incumbent”. Labour is very unpopular as the out-going Government because of the economic crisis and its inability to do anything about it, and what with Ministers unable to face up to the people in their constituencies.
