From KN, October 13, 2013, Manickchand featured as special person. Look how she became Minister:
Finally, the Minister was asked what inspired her to get into politics.
“I dont know that I was inspired to get actively involved in politics. All I ever wanted to do after graduating was law. But the election of 1997 was around the corner and for me as a young person looking on, after listening to everyone, there was simply no option but the PPP/C. So I felt compelled to play my small part in helping out Guyana by making sure the best party won. My friend Renuka and I just sort of walked into Freedom House and volunteered and were asked to help prepare kits for the election scrutineers. My “job” was to wrap scotch tape around pencils and I felt like I was doing my bit and was quite happy with that. And then someone learnt that I was a law student and asked me to do some research and one thing lead to the next.
I had also met Feroze Mohamed and Rannie Nawbatt and some other folks who were sound, solid citizens with extremely interesting lives and views on matters, and we stayed friends and in touch even after the ’97 elections. In 2006, I still held the view that the PPP/C was the only party that could deliver to Guyanese on the promise for a better country and in the run-up to the elections,I again took some time off to help out with more mundane things, figuring I would do my bit and then resume my regular life.
After the election, the dynamic President Bharrat Jagdeo invited me to be a part of his cabinet and given all the effort he and others were personally putting into making our country a better, more developed place and giving people from all brackets a better life, I felt selfish to say no and here I am today.”