Dear Editor,
Well the great USA elections are over and done, and all the fanfare and brouhaha that accompanied the campaign trail have long faded into the twilight. Like it or not we all might as well start getting accustomed to the President elect. We here in Guyana ‒ and the Caribbean ‒ should stand and give ourselves a thunderous round of applause for conducting ourselves in an exemplary manner as compared to what we witnessed in the USA.
It’s true; the longer we live there is no telling what we might see. Who would have thought that the great USA, who prides herself in lecturing one and all on democracy would have exhibited such bad behaviour in choosing a president. When decency, honesty, moral rectitude and other such values are jettisoned, then we know the end will justify the means.
We thought that it was only ourselves, the people of the underdeveloped societies who lack maturity and sophistication, who were so inclined, but we have been proven wrong. As the song says, “People are people wherever you go”. We saw here at home during our 2015 elections, jaded and irrational supporters saying that they were not prepared to accept the election results unless it was in their favour – no matter how transparent. Lo and behold president-elect Donald Trump when asked if he was prepared to accept the results, said he will do so if he wins; when pressed further about if he lost, he said he would have to look at it – examine it. But he won in what has been seen as a fair and transparent election, but still we witnessed a ridiculous demonstration by equally jaded and irrational supporters shouting “not my President,” just as he himself would have probably done had he lost. Similarly here at home when Mr Ramotar was elected President we heard, “He is na we President”. But this is we – small fry ‒ ‘is suh we stay, we is not the great USA’. Why are there petitions for a recount of votes? And lo! the president-elect himself pressed on with his earlier accusation saying it was rigged against him by allowing immigrants and unregistered persons to vote. My goodness! They are behaving just like us. We also saw in the news prior to the election an accusation against Hillary Clinton and her Democratic Party organizing and paying thugs to disrupt Trump’s rallies.
But then again, who can deny that that was the excitement which people craved and gobbled up; sex and scandal took centre stage big time, and grabbed the attention of everyone. Americans clamour for it, for without it the show would have been flat. The USA is indeed grand and great in everything but morality. Now we have to admit that with respect to elections, whether we are first, second or third world, we are not so different after all.
But I have to say that the president-elect in his acceptance speech was not even a shadow of his former self. He was no longer the raging bull on the campaign trail; he had come around full circle, sans venom or hostility, sans bitterness, sans ridicule, sans hatred. Just where did they all go in a flash? He confused and stunned everyone when he somersaulted into a new kid in town. Was it all clap-trap, or was he reborn with that victory? Really, I don’t think so. But the man is bold; to the very end of his campaign it was: “Crooked Hillary is beyond crooked and should be in jail”. Then mere hours later here is the president-elect on his arch rival whom he had dragged through the mud: “We owe a tremendous depth of gratitude to Hillary who has over the years worked tirelessly in service to the American people”.
Sometimes I wonder aloud: did God give us politicians to test our faith, patience, strength or wrath?
Yours faithfully,
Frank Fyffe
