The Anguillian
April 15th 2012
Dear Editor:
The New Webster’s Dictionary defines a politician as one versed in the science of government and the art of governing. The Random House Dictionary, on the other hand, defines a politician as a person who engages in politics for his or her own advantage. We seem to have the latter here inAnguilla. Some will tell you that they got into politics for the greater good of the country, and though some won’t admit to this, they got into politics for their own good.
Year after year we’re faced with the same tired crop of politicians preaching the same old shop worn ideas, and an electorate who rewards them with another five years to do what?
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not painting all politicians with the same brush. We’ve had some who’ve done some really wonderful things for the country. If you’ve been one of the group to which I’m referring, then you know what I’m talking about.
This country, though, deserves better. We should be among the richest in the world but, instead, we’re stuck in a spiral that we can’t seem to get out of. The man behind the controls can’t seem to pull out of this out of control plunge.
The more you listen and observe, the worse it seems to get. On Saturday while listening to the Mayor Show on KOOL FM, legal scholar Lolita Davis shed some much needed light on why we are where we are. I was fascinated by what she had to say. It was truly an education. One has to wonder how in the world did we get into this mess and, more importantly, how do we get out of it. The present administration, one has to assume, means well, but doesn’t seem to have a clue about where to turn. They seem to be satis-feed to sign MOU’s that they know damn well weren’t going anywhere; tax our businesses out of existence and blame the British. There might very well be enough blame to go around, but damn it, do something anything. At least let the people know that you are really trying instead of running off to the next easy out. We are hurting and well enough will not pacify the man or woman who is about to lose everything that he or she has ever worked for. This administration ought to be ashamed of itself as it sits idly by while its constituents are catching hell.
It’s very easy to call people out and point fingers, but when you’ve been elected to serve, you’re on the hot seat – and if things don’t turn out like you said they would, then you have got to take the rap. Someone was not telling the truth and that calls for some serious consequences. Can you say RECALL? (This is one time that the constitution does a disservice to the country.) When the electorate has no confidence in their elected representatives, then the constitution tells you what the next move is.
Maybe it is time to clean house. It’s time to retire the entire government. In the immortal words of the Mighty Sparrow: “They’ve failed miserably.” We’re in dire straits and it’s time for new blood, for people with new and innovative ideas, people who can think outside of the box, people whose experiences qualify them as people who are ready to lead. People who will be creative and aggressive in trying to get us back on top, people who will look out for our best interests, provide opportunities for our young people so that they have something more to look forward to other than immigrating toEngland.
Earlier, I alluded to the same group of politicians, contesting elections every five years using the same time tested rhetoric and shop worn ideas, and to no one’s surprise are returned to power every time. The question that no one asks is, why? What did they do that was so exceptional that they deserved a second or, in some cases, a third term? Why is it that we get the same people time and time again? Maybe we need to look no further than our constitution.
In Section 45 it is clearly spelled out that no person shall be qualified to be elected as a member of the assembly who:
(a) Holds or is acting in any public office;
(b) is a minister of religion.
There are several more reasons why one may not run for elective office, but the first two seem to carry the most weight. One can surmise, then, that section 45 disqualifies quite a few of highly qualified contestants who for one reason or the other remains shut out of the process. But wait it gets better, the plot thickens. Should any public servants decide that they can do a better job, and are more qualified than some of the usual suspects, and should they decide to contest an election and were to lose, there is no guarantee that they would get their jobs back. And if, and that’s a big if, they did get their jobs back, there is no guarantee that they would retain their accrued seniority. It will have gone for naught and they would have to start at the back of the line as probies. That in my humble opinion is grossly unfair.
It would appear then that the drafters of the constitution may have unwillingly become accomplices to the caliber of people that we have running today. So there you have it. People who might be willing to serve, and who might actually have something to offer, will not contest an election because, given the way that things are set up, they’re being penalized, so why bother? They instead, sit back in silence and watch the ship head for the rocks.
The constantly changing world requires a constantly changing politician to master and negotiate the intricacies of such a world. The days of old time politicking are long gone. We have to vet our politicians to see what they’re made of. What is it that they are willing to do for country? What’s the plan? How do you propose to accomplish your goals? Where do you see us in ten to fifteen years? What about safety nets for the less fortunate? How will you avoid what is happening now? You don’t go from being the Caribbean Jewel in the Crown to some piece of Cubic Zirconium where your people are hurting beyond belief. What has happened? Why did we not foresee this? Why was there not a safety net in place? It’s easy to ask these questions now. The question one should ask is, why they weren’t brought up before? That we are suffering like we are, is a damn disgrace and none of the people in power should get a comfortable night’s rest until they can safely say we did our damndest best for our people. Let the chips fall where they may. There are lots of questions that should been asked and answered. The fact that someone holds a job with the government or is a minister of religion should not disqualify him or her from seeking elective office.
The fact that these laws were written by middle aged white men, and sent halfway across the globe to be passed by locals who hadn’t a say in their drafting, should make us all stop and say: “Wait a damn minute! What the hell’s this? Did we not tell Bradshaw to go to hell? Didn’t we kick Tony Lee off the island? You remember what we did to Whitlock? What has happened to us? Have we gone soft? What happened to that fire that we had in our bellies? We’ve been reading our own press releases and we’re actually starting to believe that stuff. Wake up folks. We’re in the fight of our lives. Bradshaw was a sissy compared to what we’re up against right now. Remember what Paulette Harrigan told us a while ago on the radio? Remember what she said about the Brits? They have hundreds of years of playing this game. We have to beat them at their own game. The out of the box thinkers, to which I earlier referred, are very good observers of human behavior and culture. They see what makes other people successful and therefore can emulate that same behavior. The Brits are very charming and cheeky at the same time. Remember they won a war on small talk and diplomacy.
I heard Tyrone Hodge tell a story on the Mayor Show last Saturday about Commodore Perry who, during the War of 1812, was taking a beating from the British. He looked at his beleaguered troops and said something to this effect. “We have met the enemy and they are ours.” Perry then harnessed his beleaguered troops and proceeded to give the Brits a butt kicking that they wouldn’t soon forget.
Why is this story important? Because there is a way forward. Hodge goes on to say that we’re a young nation and just as Commodore Perry and his beleaguered troops were able to kick some serious butt, so too can we. We can take our beleaguered troops and do the same. We’ve survived things unimaginable. This is just one more hurdle. We didn’t move toGuyanawhen things were really bad, and we’re not about to do so now just because things are a little bumpy. Where’s that Anguillian stick-to-itiveness? We’ve got Anguillian ingenuity.
Ironically, it was during the American Revolution that Thomas Paine, in his Pamphlet Common Sense, was quoted: “If not me, then who? If not now, then when? Let’s replace me with “us.” And when with “now.” Here we are several hundred years later and we have to travel that road once again. We learn by doing. In the meantime, let’s light a fire under our duly elected members’ rear ends and hope to God that they pull us out of this death spiral that we’re in, and may God help us all.
Let me leave you with another Thomas Paine’s quote: “The mind once enlightened, cannot again become dark.” God bless us all and may God blessAnguilla.
Sincerely
Concerned Citizen
