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If the PNP is to be taken seriously...
LLOYD B SMITH
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
There has been a growing sense of disenchantment, disillusionment, discontent and alienation among many Jamaicans, particularly among the youth. This increased state of melancholy has come against the background of the tremendous disappointment being experienced by many of these people as a result of the perceived failure of the Bruce Golding-led Jamaica Labour Party government to take the country in a direction that is truly new and different.
Much of this chagrin also comes in the wake of what is being perceived as an Opposition People's National Party that appears to be battle-weary and in denial, despite many protestations to the contrary. Indeed, its detractors are being told repeatedly: "Don't worry, be happy, the best is yet to come...just wait and see the coming of the Progressive Agenda" (or words to that effect).
Apparently, the PNP is in no hurry, no doubt because the recent Don Anderson polls revealed that it enjoyed a 10 per cent lead over the JLP. But as former President and three-term Prime Minister PJ Patterson has pointed out, astute politician that he is: now is not the time for the PNP to be complacent and take things for granted. Now is the time to hit the road and "talk the things". In other words, what will a new PNP administration do differently than the JLP should it regain state power? Or will it be more of the same with the same old faces for the most part?
Even the JLP must admit in its quieter moments and behind the scenes that it has squandered a great deal of its political capital on the altar of arrogance, callousness and greed. For starters, it still accommodates a leader who has lost much of his credibility through nobody's fault but his own, and notwithstanding the commendable efforts of Minister Ed Bartlett (Tourism), Minister Audley Shaw (Finance) and Minister Christopher Tufton (Agriculture), poverty is on the upward trend and the "jobs, jobs, jobs" pre-election promise has not materialised. Then there has been the undeniable surge in corruption with well-placed Labourites and their cronies who have been starved for the past 18 1/2 years having a feeding frenzy, their noses buried in the trough. Indeed, it may well be argued that if the PNP was "worser" at corruption then this JLP regime is "worserer!"
Is it then that if the PNP were to be returned to power it would then become the "worsest"? That is the potent question on many well-thinking Jamaicans' lips that have had enough of the Golding administration but are wary about turning to the PNP again in such a relatively short space of time. It therefore behoves the PNP to put its house in order and respond to the concerns being raised not just by detractors but by patriotic Jamaicans who are desirous to see meaningful and lasting change taking place on the socio-political landscape.
So if the PNP is not to be seen as a pack of jokers but is to be taken seriously, what are some of the signals it should send to the people and what should be its message?
To begin with, the PNP needs a new image, a new face. One of the most frequent criticisms is that too many of the frontline persons who were in the thick of things (some of them deemed to be tired and lacking the passion to continue) and who are to be blamed for the mistakes and mismanagement between 1989 and 2007 need to be retired not only in the PNP's interest but in the public's interest. This may sound harsh, but the PNP must realise that there is a generational shift taking place in the society and so if it is to appeal to the youth and independent voters out there, most of whom are turned off from politics whether it be green or orange-tinged, then there must be renewal.
In the meantime, the party has taken too long to put together an effective shadow cabinet. Frankly, the current one lacks fixity of purpose and has not made any real dent in the JLP's armour. Merely dispatching a plethora of press releases is not the way to go. And what of the highly touted Progressive Agenda? Why is it still being treated as the PNP's best kept secret? Let us hope it does not turn out to be "fool's gold", because Jamaica is now at a very critical crossroads and if the people cannot find a genuine alternative that is going to make them the centre of the developmental process, then "dawg gwine nyam we suppa!"
I sometimes get the impression that the PNP is fast adopting an exclusive rather than an inclusive approach when dealing with the various inputs necessary to make it an attractive government-in-waiting. In that context, it is expected that everyone must sing the same sankey and dance to the same tune. Yes, anyone who is a part of the Progressive Agenda ought to be prepared to espouse the principles of the party which are most noble, but it would be a pity if there is no room for independent thinking in that organisation which in fact had its early birth pains within the throes of seeking to forge an alliance of all classes.
Unquestionably, Portia Simpson Miller is still the most loved and popular political persona in Jamaica today. However, her popularity and the increasing unpopularity of Bruce Golding must not be the only template on which the PNP designs its architecture for good governance. The entire society must be engaged in any attempts at renewal. By 2012, Jamaica would have wasted 50 years of trying to become an economically independent nation. In order to fix the economy, we must first fix the politics.
Now that this great nation is on the threshold of another 50 years of self-determination, both the JLP and PNP have been weighed in the balance and found wanting. The people have been saying "No better herring, no better barrel". If the PNP is to rise up and rescue this country, then it must first rescue itself from the politics of scarce benefits and spoils. Does it have the courage to do this? The JLP has not, so far.
lloydbsmith@hotmail.com
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/colum...#ixzz1C64uxB7f
LLOYD B SMITH
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
There has been a growing sense of disenchantment, disillusionment, discontent and alienation among many Jamaicans, particularly among the youth. This increased state of melancholy has come against the background of the tremendous disappointment being experienced by many of these people as a result of the perceived failure of the Bruce Golding-led Jamaica Labour Party government to take the country in a direction that is truly new and different.
Much of this chagrin also comes in the wake of what is being perceived as an Opposition People's National Party that appears to be battle-weary and in denial, despite many protestations to the contrary. Indeed, its detractors are being told repeatedly: "Don't worry, be happy, the best is yet to come...just wait and see the coming of the Progressive Agenda" (or words to that effect).
Apparently, the PNP is in no hurry, no doubt because the recent Don Anderson polls revealed that it enjoyed a 10 per cent lead over the JLP. But as former President and three-term Prime Minister PJ Patterson has pointed out, astute politician that he is: now is not the time for the PNP to be complacent and take things for granted. Now is the time to hit the road and "talk the things". In other words, what will a new PNP administration do differently than the JLP should it regain state power? Or will it be more of the same with the same old faces for the most part?
Even the JLP must admit in its quieter moments and behind the scenes that it has squandered a great deal of its political capital on the altar of arrogance, callousness and greed. For starters, it still accommodates a leader who has lost much of his credibility through nobody's fault but his own, and notwithstanding the commendable efforts of Minister Ed Bartlett (Tourism), Minister Audley Shaw (Finance) and Minister Christopher Tufton (Agriculture), poverty is on the upward trend and the "jobs, jobs, jobs" pre-election promise has not materialised. Then there has been the undeniable surge in corruption with well-placed Labourites and their cronies who have been starved for the past 18 1/2 years having a feeding frenzy, their noses buried in the trough. Indeed, it may well be argued that if the PNP was "worser" at corruption then this JLP regime is "worserer!"
Is it then that if the PNP were to be returned to power it would then become the "worsest"? That is the potent question on many well-thinking Jamaicans' lips that have had enough of the Golding administration but are wary about turning to the PNP again in such a relatively short space of time. It therefore behoves the PNP to put its house in order and respond to the concerns being raised not just by detractors but by patriotic Jamaicans who are desirous to see meaningful and lasting change taking place on the socio-political landscape.
So if the PNP is not to be seen as a pack of jokers but is to be taken seriously, what are some of the signals it should send to the people and what should be its message?
To begin with, the PNP needs a new image, a new face. One of the most frequent criticisms is that too many of the frontline persons who were in the thick of things (some of them deemed to be tired and lacking the passion to continue) and who are to be blamed for the mistakes and mismanagement between 1989 and 2007 need to be retired not only in the PNP's interest but in the public's interest. This may sound harsh, but the PNP must realise that there is a generational shift taking place in the society and so if it is to appeal to the youth and independent voters out there, most of whom are turned off from politics whether it be green or orange-tinged, then there must be renewal.
In the meantime, the party has taken too long to put together an effective shadow cabinet. Frankly, the current one lacks fixity of purpose and has not made any real dent in the JLP's armour. Merely dispatching a plethora of press releases is not the way to go. And what of the highly touted Progressive Agenda? Why is it still being treated as the PNP's best kept secret? Let us hope it does not turn out to be "fool's gold", because Jamaica is now at a very critical crossroads and if the people cannot find a genuine alternative that is going to make them the centre of the developmental process, then "dawg gwine nyam we suppa!"
I sometimes get the impression that the PNP is fast adopting an exclusive rather than an inclusive approach when dealing with the various inputs necessary to make it an attractive government-in-waiting. In that context, it is expected that everyone must sing the same sankey and dance to the same tune. Yes, anyone who is a part of the Progressive Agenda ought to be prepared to espouse the principles of the party which are most noble, but it would be a pity if there is no room for independent thinking in that organisation which in fact had its early birth pains within the throes of seeking to forge an alliance of all classes.
Unquestionably, Portia Simpson Miller is still the most loved and popular political persona in Jamaica today. However, her popularity and the increasing unpopularity of Bruce Golding must not be the only template on which the PNP designs its architecture for good governance. The entire society must be engaged in any attempts at renewal. By 2012, Jamaica would have wasted 50 years of trying to become an economically independent nation. In order to fix the economy, we must first fix the politics.
Now that this great nation is on the threshold of another 50 years of self-determination, both the JLP and PNP have been weighed in the balance and found wanting. The people have been saying "No better herring, no better barrel". If the PNP is to rise up and rescue this country, then it must first rescue itself from the politics of scarce benefits and spoils. Does it have the courage to do this? The JLP has not, so far.
lloydbsmith@hotmail.com
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/colum...#ixzz1C64uxB7f
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