The entry into politics for Youth is through the Opposition

If you are thinking of entering active politics in the future, and you have a clear goal as to where you want to go, I would recommend, especially for those with meager resources to come in through the Opposition. When a party is in the Opposition, they have less of a demand on their resources. A young person can more easily make a name for himself amongst his peers in the opposition as only those serious enough will be in that group of active members, be it in a youth organization or not.

One has a greater chance of making a name for oneself within the opposition as there will be too many people within the government, and favorites of the ruling coalition will grab all available places. This is not the case in the opposition. The numbers are fewer, the chances and greater and in time the opposition will form a government, and by that time those who join now will be able to be where the action is with the movers and shakers.

To achieve this you have to be sure of yourself and faith in being able to come to power. Once you build a name within your party as a hard worker, you will without doubt get nomination for the Pradeshiya Sabhas as they allocate a specific percentage of positions for youth. You can almost be guaranteed to get the ticket to contest, and often they have no members to fill the quota according to the age group currently set as 35 and under.

When you receive your ticket you will get the needed experience to contest and run a campaign. There will be an element of competition within the party, and this will toughen you for the road ahead and know exactly what is happening outside. You have time on your hands, and so defeat does not need to be taken as a reason to quit, but more as a reason to learn from the mistakes so that next time round, you will be able to do what it is you want with the campaign and know how you can play the game, as that is what it really is, a game of bluff and counter bluff.

The skill you put to your campaign and the initial number of votes you get generally allows you to contest next time with a base of people willing to help be it in kind or generally in cash. There are people willing to fund you. They can be called on to help and you just need to run a carefully planned campaign. It is the only real method through which one with few resources can build a base of youth and they will be with you as and when you are able to get to the next point of elected office, when fund raising becomes easier.

It is easier to cut your teeth into the game that is politics at an early stage, but also to keep a balance to ensure that you build a career that is other than politics. Otherwise you will be beholden to others or resort to crime to fund your way as many who have been down this road have done. It is important that you are able to consider yourself a man of principle and are willing to dedicate yourself to the people, and represent their interests first and foremost as a holder of elected office is a servant and representative of the people, not the other way round.

Never forget that during your whole political life. Service to your people and to your nation. Not the examples you see today.