Regardless of who wins at the end of the day, successive Jamaican governments and especially their presiding prime ministers are not just exceptional, but phenomenal human beings. Whether Andrew is returned to high office, or asked to take a temporary break, he has given yeoman service to the Jamaican people; his track record of achievement is indeed an impressive credit to his forebears; he is and will remain of tremendous, lasting, and critical significance to countless Jamaican lives; his personal example of confident leadership, wholesome family life integrated into a powerful business and political partnership is forever stamped on the imagination of young bright Jamaican students venturing out into an uncertain world and in need of lamplights and lodestars. Regardless of missteps and flaws, real or imagined, fairly attributed or viciously framed without warrant, he deserves a standing ovation.
Jamaicans need to look around the world and examine how truly petulant and capricious, how indolent and self-satisfied, how curmudgeon, contemptuous and cruel political leadership can be. Then we might understand the tremendous blessing we have in our leaders from whichever side of the political divide. One of the changes I hopefully would like to see in the future is perhaps some enshrined ceremonial innovation designed to express fulsome national gratitude to outgoing administrations and perhaps also new mechanisms designed to encourage collaboration across party lines whoever is in office.
Who is to say for example, however inconceivable it may be currently, that the common interest of the Jamaican people would not be enhanced by the token possibility of a mixed cabinet drawing from strengths across the aisle as needed by government, or suggested by, or deemed to be in the interest of the people?
As ridiculous and as untenable as such a suggestion may strike the eye, the fact is that it is in the internal friction between poles of competition and consultation that adversarial relationships are harnessed into covenantal alliance and the most dynamic environment is forged for creativity and innovation. It happens to be a historical fact that Jamaica’s greatest and golden period of economic growth was generated by across-the-aisle collaboration necessitated by one party publishing the plan that the other party implemented. This was during the 50s when it was we who were the envy of Singapore.
The most wearisome and I dare say infantile element of political campaigning is the puerile characterization of the opposing party or candidate as the epitome of corruption and ineptitude while vaunting one’s own virtue and acumen. Some amount of ‘Gotcha!’ is undoubtedly necessary to keep one on one’s toes, but the ‘you-Satan-me-Virgin- Mary’ caricatures are simply ridiculous. (Sigh!) I do hope we can dispense with this soon. It is an insult to common Jamaican intelligence.
Rejection at the polls for the highest seat in the land must not be confused with outright rejection by the polity. The people may be generally pleased with an administration’s performance but sufficiently disturbed by some particular direction, or set of directions, or some outstanding issue or set of issues to assign even a high performing team to the bench.
Neither should any incoming government assume that victory at the polls gives them total license to reverse all preceding programs and policies. Where the Westminster system we have inherited encourages zero-sum politics, we must attenuate it to suit our circumstance. We have too much to accomplish to afford one-step-forward-two-steps-backward politics.
The worst Jamaican prime ministers and many if not most of our elected representatives are paragons of virtue when compared to some of their international counterparts. Jamaican Prime Ministers, even when generously (or ungenerously) publicly criticised, generally are personal examples of consistent and assiduous work in the common public interest, whether lauded or vilified. We may wish to learn not to ever take that for granted.
YeKengalé 