We are heading into the period when persons who intend to contest in the next national election make their intentions known in their socio-economic circles.

Our next national election is in 2022. The Governor General will issue the writs for the polls in April 2022.

That is not very far.

It is anxious moments for the sitting MPs as well - that the five years of a different form of live experience from the ordinary is nearing its end. No doubt, the MPs would be mapping out their battle plans on seeking re-election. Re-election is never a walk in the park in PNG politics. The MPs have to be prepared, even if that means mapping out shadowy battle plans using public resources in their custody of incumbency in office do it. The latter has been part of the game that our authorities adjudicating good governance have been unable to meet it out of our system of politics.

We now see many sitting MPs crisscrossing their electorates opening projects or declaring commencement of new ones with accompanying national media publicity in the mainstream media and on Facebook in particular. In fact, many MPs now have dedicated Facebook pages where they promote themselves the work they do.

In some social circles, we see people having regular meetings with the intending candidates. In others, the intending candidates are going out and taking part in cultural activities and assisting those in need in cash and kind. Many Facebook sites are alight with discussions around intending candidates and the chances of the sitting MPs to retain the seats.

Intending candidates have also position themselves in the public sector through appointments.

Governments or the ruling parties have the habit of appointing potential candidates of their parties in public offices especially at the boards of statutory authorities or state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Names of certain serving senior public servants are being floated around on Facebook as potential candidates for various seats in 2022.

Many a times, losing candidates in the previous election are appointed to the boards of the statutory authorities and or SOEs. One losing candidate in the last national election in 2017 has been appointed as head of a very important government agency. Will this person resign to re-contest in the 2022 national election? I will await what happens when the writs are issued in April 2022.

It is all very well that potential candidates for the 2022 national elections are preparing themselves and discussing their intentions within their socio-economic circles.

It is their right to be prepared months in advance.

What concerns me is the silence of the registered politic parties. We do not hear about their membership mobilization or awareness of their policies any other time. We only see them surface few months before the next national election.

Political parties in Papua New Guinea supposed to stand for an issue or value and that supposed to be promoted and made known to the public and invite citizens to be members of the parties.

The parties supposed to build their membership base from the grassroots up. They also supposed to be build their financial base from donations by members and supporters and from their investment portfolios.

With strong membership and supporter base and sound financial footing, the PNG political parties then supposed to identify leadership talent and nurture them. The parties supposed to identify and nurture leadership talent and prepare them for potential leadership roles within the parties and for elected office.

By elected office, I mean at the ward, local level government, district, provincial and national levels. It supposed to be the role of political parties to make their policies and visions felt right at the people level in the wards and build on from there. People are supposed to identify with parties that policies or platforms that suits their own values and aspirations in life.

For example, if a PNG political party is pro-life, people who disagree with any form of abortion of an unborn child will identify with them and support them.

Today, it is sad to say that PNG’s political parties are very seasonal and only surface in few months and weeks before the next national elections with poorly articulated policy platforms.

Political parties must begin to appreciate the change in the demographics of PNG and times we are living in. Today more and more young people and voting age population are educated and can read and write.

These are people who can read what is posted on social media or the Internet. This growing group of young Papua New Guineans has a working knowledge on how issue and or value-based party politics is played out in places like the United States of America. The PNG political parties can no longer hide behind the tired old rhetorical politics of fighting corruption and building infrastructure.

It is incumbent upon politics parties in PNG to grow up and see the times we are in now, change tact, be receptive and engage the public.

In this regard, we must be asking the following: Where are the political parties as we head towards an all important national election in 2022 in the era of COVID 19?