Dear Editor,
We are in the silly season once again. I am not necessarily referring to our politicians but specifically to our national system of governance. With essentially two major political parties vying to form the next government, the imminent contest never was about any other than the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) and the People’s National Congress (PNC).
The PPP is generally accepted as an Indian party as the PNC is accepted as the African party. So, at election time the politicians from their respective parties encourage ethnic voting. Some criticize that. But that is not racism. It is simple human nature. We all are born with the natural tendency to embrace that which we identify with. It is normal behaviour and so there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. But I will tell you what is abnormal.
The season is silly because when the result of the national election is declared, the party that loses, but which had garnered literally hundreds of thousands of votes, and who will occupy nearly half the seats in Parliament, has its representatives relegated to becoming impotent bystanders in that hallowed chamber, unable to make laws, change existing laws or to nullify existing ones. Our brand of democracy says that must happen for the next five years. What can be sillier and more abnormal? Imagine we have been doing this for over half century. Meanwhile, the party who wins must find scores of persons to fill the positions of Ministers and top officials. In the haste to do so, the hierarchy, often, would be initially oblivious to the fact that among their trusted comrades chosen would be a few racists, misfits, consummate crooks and even functional imbeciles. And our culture is not to get rid of them appropriately.
In Brazil, where I lived and studied for 5 years, the party with the most votes names the President, the second placed party names the Prime Minister. The Ministers and top state officials are divided proportionately among those 2 parties using a fixed formula enshrined in the constitution. The other parties will comprise the traditional opposition. I guarantee with that type of unity we could get rid of blackouts which successive governments still cannot eliminate even after 40 years. We would have the vision to re-introduce the railway which is the cheapest and safest means of mass transport in existence, saving billions of dollars yearly from our fuel import bill. The residents of Region 7 would not consider having running potable in their homes a luxury, when that region produces about 230,000 ounces of gold per year, the biggest earner of our foreign dollars. These are only a few examples. So, while we may be one nation with one destiny we are certainly not one people. In other words, concentrated political co-operation and sound policies would facilitate exponential growth both socially and infrastructurally.
In our brand of democracy, our Constitution needs drastic reformation, as our leaders have been repeating for many years and not doing anything to make it happen. For example, our most brilliant lawyers went all the way up to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) to find out if 33 is a majority of 65. Again, our Constitution says after a No Confidence Motion (NCM) is passed, the Cabinet including the President must resign but it did not specify who will run the country immediately after that happens.
Finally, I believe government and the opposition representatives, key stakeholders and experts in the oil and gas industry both local and in the diaspora should collectively (in unity there is strength), summon a meeting with all the principals of the companies who have found oil and gas here. They should say to them, “Hey Guys, just a minute. Not so fast! We need to take another look at those contracts. Something does not seem right here. We have to fix it!” Now, I’d love to see the cynical smirk disappear from their faces. And we must do it before they start pumping.
Yours faithfully,
Dr. Bertrand R. Stuart
