18 Years in the Making!

The JLP put up a hell of a campaign and it has resulted in the Jamaican people saying "we will give you a chance." Take that chance and make the best of it. In doing my small part, I have preapred this video to show how far we have come. Enjoy!

Our Long National Nightmare Continues ...?

Today is a great today to be a Jamaican. I am very pleased of course with how the election turned out. I was at my computer last night chatting with my Jamaican internet friends about how the race was unfolding and it was gripping. I sat with my pen and pad with two columns drawn on my paper. Each time a seat was called for one candidate or the other I made a check in the corresponding column. The first indication I had the JLP had a majority of the seats came when I heard it on the Power 106. The TV and radio stations were surprisingly cautious in calling seats.

Mr. Golding was a true statesman last evening in his “victory” speech. I had never before this race been interested in Jamaican politics but I was sucked in after reading about Mr. Golding. He comes across as genuine, principled and extremely focused. He seems like exactly what our country needs at this time to help restore our reputation internationally, restore hope to our people and start to grow the economy. These are very weighty goals but I as I am sure many other Jamaicans stand ready to join with him to do what we can for our country.

Mr. Golding hinted toward this but I hope that he comes out and speaks clearly on it very soon. That is he needs to issue the call to national service for all Jamaicans. As I have shared with my Jamaican “net” friends, Mrs. Simpson-Miller incorrectly interpreted the reason for your initial broad based support from a majority of Jamaicans. She failed to realize that she personally embodied change for our country as the first female PM in Jamaica and I think in the Caribbean. I, like many other Jamaicans placed all of our hopes for a brighter and better Jamaica on her and we were let down which is why people started looking at Mr. Golding. It was ironic that she was the embodiment of change for our country but the message from her campaign was “not change course.” This was not what we wanted to hear from Mamma!

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said the ultimate measure of a man “person” in this case is not where he/she stands in comfort and convenience but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. The place we find ourselves with a closely divided country is the kind of circumstance that shows character. Mr. Golding has passed the first test of showing grace and statesmanship at a time where no one could fault him for gloating even slightly. Mamma on the other hand has not; she instead seems to be leaning toward continuing the fight as opposed to unifying the country. I hope for the sake of the country, she FINALLY changes course.

Those "Digital Distortions" Again!

Is it as KD Knight said that “if the person is popular but can’t hold the party together the party gwan lose?” The recent string of events coming out of the ruling PNP party may suggest Mr. Knight might have known something that the rest of us either didn’t know or was unwilling to admit-Portia is not capable of successfully discharging the responsibilities of the office she currently holds. It lure of having our first female PM was so difficult to resist that we didn’t even bother to ask questions about her qualifications.

Her poor showing in the national debates and the political missteps this week with the declaration of a state of public emergency has made that painfully all too clear- “Sista P can’t manage the prime minister wok.” These bumblings so close to the end of a political campaign can have devastating effects especially because undecided voters often side with the party that is not in power. The diehards have already come home. The struggle in this part of the race is to close the deal with the small part of the electorate that will determine the outcome of the election.

If as I expect on Sept. 4th the PNP under Sista P’s leadership is handed a defeat by the most organized opposition they have faced in quite some time they will have Mamma P to blame. For someone who has been in government for more than 20 years she has behaved like a novice. She seems to be oblivious to the fact that public statements are recorded and will almost certainly come back to visit you in the future. I hate to revisit the national debates again but she never used one complete sentence the entire ninety minutes. As leader of her party and I guess we can call her the “driver,” she has done a horrible job at presenting a coherent message that would convince even a 2nd grader that her party should remain in power. She seems likeable as a person but Jamaicans are not electing the prom queen; they are electing the person that will right the course of our country and get us moving again.

Our Long National Nightmare Continues

Jamaicans are pulling things back together after the ravages of hurricane Dean. I am thankful that it wasn’t worst but I empathize with those who lost a loved one or sustained damage to their property. I am hopeful that the “can do” spirit of our people will sustain them in this time of despair. I am not hopeful however that the Portia Government will chose a course that is in the best interest of our broken country and all indication suggest that she continues to be the leader of her party and not leader of all Jamaica.

Her lack of willingness to charge course his quickly emerging as her Achilles heel in this election. There are several examples that illustrate this but I think the two that stand out the most is her decision not to make any meaningful changes to her cabinet when she ascended to the Prime Minstership and prematurely declaring a state of emergency (SOE) ahead of Hurricane Dean earlier this week. Both had far reaching implications but it’s the latter that I am most concerned with at this time.

Let me be the first to confess that I do not have a degree in the constitutional law of Jamaica but I still have not heard any plausible justification for why such a move was necessary. Secondly, her declaration is being used as a rationale for further hijacking the electoral process and threatening the most important responsibility our people have. The most logical question then is why? Why has she found it necessary at this time to take these actions?

The answer I think rest in the belief within her party that they were headed for a defeat. Under the current SOE she gets to assume the role of elder statesperson rising above politics and leading the nation through difficult times. She can command the bully pulpit by repeatedly calling press conferences void of any real benefit to the public but instead are really drawn out PNP ads. The opposition in the meanwhile is caught in what one of my professors referred to as the “double bind.” If they come out too early with motorcades and other rallies they will be accused of politicizing the aftermath of dean but if they remain quiet they risk losing the momentum they had prior to the hurricane. It amounts to a virtual no win situation for them and thus a brilliant move on the part of Mamma “p” and her party. I am watching and waiting to see what move Mr. Golding and his party will make.

State of Emergency, What State of Emergency?

End that State of Public Emergency now
Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Let there be no doubt or equivocation about our position. This State of Public Emergency declared Sunday night cannot and must not stand. We believe that there is absolutely no justification for it and, if it were meant to help, then it has had the very opposite effect, by creating a perception in the outside world, and among tourists, in particular, that Jamaica is not open for business.
Jamica Oberver Editorial
Click here for full story


Lift the State of Emergency now
Tuesday, August 21, 2007

We must express serious concern with the undue haste with which the Government has declared a period of public emergency. The decision to advise the Governor-General to make such a proclamation was made without consultation with the leader of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP). We believe that a step of such enormous magnitude in the midst of a fiercely contested general election required some consultation. The Prime Minister's justification for taking this step is presented after the fact and is completely unconvincing.
Jamaica Gleaner
Click here for full story

Above is how the nation’s two leading newspapers framed the recently declared state of emergency issued by PM Mamma “P.” both seem to take the position that it was hastily and thus prematurely issued and is in no way reflective of the current state of the country. The PM’s primary rationale for the edict is to “protect human life” but no one seems to be buying this. Instead it is being framed as a last ditched attempt to hold on to power. I do believe that the indication she was getting before this storm was that if the election was held on the 27th has previously announced she and her party would lose. Her dismal performance in the national debates and the incoherent messages coming out of your campaign declaring her party as one of change while simultaneously and might I throw in there foolishly holding on to the mantra that she “na change no coase” I think guaranteed that she would come up short in the August 27th Vote (The great and powerful oz may be misreading this).

It appears that Mamma may have incorrectly calculated (not an attack on your aptitude) how this order would be interpreted by a public struggling to pull their lives back together or maybe it is I who don’t understand it. I listen to talk radio throughout the day and most of the callers on the two main talk stations expressed concern about the state of emergency order. Yes, I will admit that my method is less than scientific but I don’t think I am not far off. Jamaicans are concerned about the impact that Mamma’s proclamation will have on the economy and their ability to go about their daily lives. Mutty Perkins and a few of his callers (August 21st show) gave us a condensed history lesson on some of the abuses that took place in the 70s when a similar order was issued. I, like so many of my fellow patriotic Jamaicans will be watching the news to see how this issue unfold.

Have we Entered a Period of Post-Partisanship?

"Dont Draw Mi Tongue"

Saturday, the day before hurricane Dean was projected to hit Jamaica; I posted a comment on YouTube trying to find out what effect my online friends thought the impending hurricane would have on the upcoming election. I openly wondered if the calls for unity would shift the climate to one that favored the PM Mamma “P.” My calculation was that people would be dealing with loss of life and property and simply would not be in the mood for ads like “Don’t Draw Mi Tongue” which in part has contributed to the JLP inching ahead towards the close of this election cycle. I, like some others suggested that the JLP should consider holding back on this ad for a few days to assess the climate. I was concerned that it would give fuel to Mamma “P’s” supposition that the JLP only focused on the negative. I also assumed that the PM would be out surveying the disaster and issuing statements of comfort to a battered public. After all prior to the election the PM issued a safety message that led me to believe she was moving towards taking this elder stateswoman role.

My assumption at this point appears to have been wrong. The PM has instead wrongly declared a state of emergency and her party supports have released new negative ads. The nation however seems to be in a different place. Based on all the ads I have heard on radio and the messages seen on the evening news, the country appears to in a mood of national unity. Even my friend Mutty Perkins took a little heat yesterday when he opened his show with comments that were critical of the government. So rather than delaying the momentum of the JLP team the PM may have provided another opening and I am sure Bruce is wise enough to see it. With the PM signaling that she is going to continue leading her party instead of the country the possibility is there for Mr. Golding to step in and embrace the call for unifying the country. I think it’s was Marting Luther King that said the “ultimate measure of a man (person in this case) is not where he stands in times of comfort and convenience but where he stands in times of challenge and controversy.” Who among them will answer the call to lead?