Mr Vishnu Bisram has played a pioneering role in introducing polling in Guyana. The path had been blazed in Jamaica many years ago by the late Carl Stone who had become a legend in his own lifetime as a result of the quality of his polls on elections. Regrettably, Mr Stone was never able to come to Guyana. Of course polling in the Burnham era would have faced certain obstacles but the results would have been extremely interesting and significant as they would have documented the absurdity of the election results which bore no relationship whatever to public opinion or the votes actually cast.

Polling is a useful and relevant exercise in a democratic culture though to be significant it must be carried out with a high level of professionalism. In Trinidad, for example, over the years there have been some highly inaccurate predictions by pollsters. Mr Bisram has established a good track record both here and in Trinidad since he started over a decade ago. When this newspaper published the results of his poll for the 2001 elections predicting a PPP victory there was a major outcry. People were not used to this effort at the scientific measurement of public opinion and criticisms of all kinds were raised, ranging from allegations of bias to unprofessionalism. In the outcome, the predictions proved accurate and he confounded his critics.

But of course a polling culture cannot be established overnight and elections have always been a particularly sensitive topic in Guyana, for obvious reasons. To his credit, Mr Bisram has been conducting polls here for many years, a thankless task, and continues to do so. He has also built a considerable reputation in Trinidad. He has recently carried out a poll in Guyana on a number of issues and we have been publishing some of the results. Not surprisingly, he has discovered a high level of political apathy and disillusionment in the electorate, particularly with the two main parties. There is a tremendous amount of despair in Guyana today. People have been losing hope for decades and emigration continues. They are wondering if and when their lot will improve and when they will enjoy some real peace and stability. The two main parties seem to have become more part of the problem than the solution and there is an unfathomable depth of fatigue with their predictable bickering and small-mindedness.

Polling introduces a scientific approach and, hopefully, reduces the possibilities for wild speculation on various topics. In the United Kingdom, for example, Prime Minister Tony Blair would be hard pressed to argue that there was widespread support for the invasion of Iraq in face of the polls which show otherwise (what would a poll on the restriction of flour have shown in the old days?). Polls allow public opinion to be assessed and announced on a variety of topics, feeding back to politicians and influencing their thinking. Some critics of course have argued that this process can go too far and politicians can become a slave to the polls and lose a will of their own.

Perhaps the parties should listen to some of what the people have been telling Mr Bisram. It may be true that when national elections come along the clans may close ranks again out of insecurity or fear and vote as they usually do. But that does not mean that a large number of people are satisfied with the status quo. Mr Bisram’s poll shows that this is very far from being the case.