In modern democracies people vote primarily according to what they hear and understand particularly from the media and other pundits that cover campaigns. As a consequence the average person makes decisions based on his/her conscious ability to assimilate the material presented to him/her. Looking at it from that perspective, people rely on knowledge, awareness and their ability to independently analyze situations. For this reason objective thought, and not “dem say”, is most important. More often than not the best results are obtained when they are not tempered by other people’s ideas that come through “the grapevine”.
We here in Anguilla do not possess an elaborate media network capable of broadcasting information effectively so we have substituted an extensive gossip column that allows the news to get around as it varies from “mouth to mouth”. That could be a problem for poorly informed voters because voting is an important personal thing and depends on awareness. Surely, awareness is a power broker because it exposes the truth and falsehood of situations; renders gossip to impotence; and allows the truth to be presented for what it is. That is why truth, under normal circumstances, is the most powerful weapon in the arsenal of a responsible politician. But what is normal in our politics, today? Do the results of voting declare that we are politically aware? Are we, over the years, content with the way that we have been voting? Have we now come to realize that we must change our outlook and behavior on the way we vote, and the purpose of elections?
No doubt we have begun to change and improve some social conditions. All children can now go to Secondary School. Many, as may want to, can strive to go on to college. There are more local lawyers and engineers and, in general, a more professional class than ever before. However, we continue to select the people that run the country in the same old way and they in turn maintain the same old system. That is our main and most serious problem that needs to be addressed urgently. For what good is served if our youngsters who go away to developed countries become educated – and aware of modern political practice – only to hear echoed from some local politico when they return: “you do not need to have education to be a politician in Anguilla!” That is an idea of the ignorant and the unlearned.
But what does it mean? Does it mean do not waste your money on education? Suck it up! We like it so! We couldn’t care less about future politicians! Does this mean: “I am not in this for Anguilla. I am in this for me”? This is where the sour confusion finds its place for discontent. Because although most of us want to promote Anguilla as “a classy, yet classless, society” where anyone from any sector of the community can have a chance at reaching the apex of politics, we remain committed to the notion that our representatives must be progressive. Voters should not even by mistake empower persons who do not understand power or how to use it effectively. What we must be aware of is that when we elect a representative we collectively relinquish power to him/her to act on our behalf. That is the reason why we need to be aware of the capabilities of the persons to whom we grant such privilege. It matters greatly that the transfer of power to a representative should not be haphazard. The situation cannot be taken lightly. Such wrong decisions in our constitutional context take five years to correct. Is the present situation the result of “poodle politics”? As we look around us there is little or no advancement in our main money-spinner”; there are no anxious investors in sight; and nobody seems to know where we are going. There is no point in asking: “how the country running?” Too many are saying they “running it into the ground.” We need a Government with a big heart. We want a dog that bites — not one that licks shoes and barks in the house. In most organized societies, government is the agent of change. To get change in Anguilla now — it seems necessary to first change the government.
We must be aware that going to the polls is not the same ritual as Indians going to the Ganges on a pilgrimage or Muslims going to Mecca. A trip to the polls has a much different significance and we must be aware that. The real purpose of elections is to select people to form a Government. But we must be aware of their capabilities as well as the meaning behind the statement “a people gets the government it deserves”. Sometimes it is said that people in power are the political reflection of the people who elected them. Obviously, then, in order to change things here there is the need for awareness of this Government’s behavior. In Anguilla that could mean conscious “people power” facing the frivolity of “poodle power”! It means power not just to throw weight around, but power to make good things happen. Power to make the island thrive and move on. We should be marching onward and not marking time!
So what is the story in the mind of the man in the street? Is he aware that he has the whole political world in his hands because he can decide who “run things” by helping to select the Government? He at the same time is responsible to other people for choosing capable representatives. He must think like U. S. President John F. Kennedy and reflect on the statement: “ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country”. That could be his contribution to the country.
But, fellow Anguillians, the question still not answered is why do we vote the way that we do? And to which principles are we attached? How much would more awareness contribute to electing our political representatives? Since the party system has never flourished here, and ideology has not raised its head, then we can deduce that our political choices can only be traced to relationships or personalities. That would make it hard to improve the existing system — if it means that I am going to vote for my cousin under any circumstance even though I know that he does not have the prerequisites for the position. This motive is already impacted by the demography of the electorate. The question that comes up then is: Do the people in West End and Island Harbor vote differently as compared to The Valley constituencies? Where do the issues have the most or least weight among the populace? How much is awareness-driven? How much is influenced by family relationship? Can we break this mould?
So then what is the role of the people? Are they to accede to the concept of those who argue and postulate that there is no need for education in politics in Anguilla? Or to those who propose no entry in politics without an education comparable, or at least compatible, with our counterparts elsewhere in the Caribbean? There could be great merit in the latter line of thought because this is tempered by an experience and awareness that could lead to raising the bar – and that needs to be done urgently. Indeed, it is a poor land that has no fame and no history. And where people hamper the future by walking around spewing silly talk — unaware of the real world in which we must thrive.
