Javier Guardiola believes that politics is about believing in something, which is why he is running for the presidency of the General Secretariat of the Socialist Party Youth. The current socialist deputy in the Madrid Assembly talks to our colleague, Federico Quevedo, about the possibility of changing things.
First primary elections for the Socialist Youth
There are two candidates running for the presidency of the Socialist Youth. The primary elections will be held in November and the Congress will be held in December. It will be the first primary process to be held in the organization. Guardiola will be travelling around the country in the coming weeks to exchange ideas and world views.
In these meetings, according to the deputy, “we can perceive the enthusiasm of young people about the country we want. The young people have to be at all the tables where all the decisions are made”. Guardiola explains that by debating and making these trips, citizenship is built. Furthermore, according to the deputy, different realities are perceived depending on the territory. “Madrid is not Spain, Spain is enormous and the diversity of our country is spectacular”, he said.
However, Guardiola affirms that there is a need in all territories for work and life opportunities. For the socialist deputy, the demands of young people are also centered on housing and social rights, but what is fundamental for him is “to eliminate uncertainty, that we know what will happen to our lives next year”.
The current model of political participation is in crisis, but young people still want to participate. Therefore, according to Guardiola, it is necessary to adapt the ways of historical organizations such as the PSOE to the new forms of participation: “we must be aware that our participation as a big organization has to open up to society”.
Petitions from the socialist youth
If Javier Guardiola wins the elections as Secretary General of the Socialist Youth, the first thing on his mind will be urgent measures to build the generational bridges needed to reconnect. “There is a material and cultural generational gap and there has been a clash where the summary is that young people are bad, and they are not”, explains the deputy.
According to Guardiola, “there is a disaffection among young people for politics: they do not see it as a useful tool and because issues are debated that get nowhere”. The MP believes that politics should be made useful for the problems of young people. In addition, Guardiola invites other political formations to share generational challenges in order to find solutions.
Listen to the full interview in the audio below:
Through ‘El Balance’, a program hosted by Federico Quevedo on Capital Radio, Influence Spain is able to expand its network of contacts within the national, regional and municipal spectrum.
