Garth Rattray
THE FOUR CANDIDATES who are jostling for the post of People's National Party president have been politicking feverishly in order to gain favour with the delegates. People who sling mud always end up with dirty hands, but this hasn't stopped the campaign teams from making allegations, issuing accusations and casting aspersions (directly disobeying Prime Minister Patterson's admonition not to do so). Now, discord and defensive rhetoric have taken centre stage. But, what interests me most are the bodacious promises being made at this time.
Jamaicans are wondering how it is that these same candidates whose party has been at the helm for 17 years can suddenly promise to provide jobs, put food on everybody's table, improve the economy and bring peace and unity to our badly ailing country. Have these talented minds been dormant all these years? Have they had the answers to all our woes and kept them to themselves all along? Were the candidates being prevented from sharing their wealth of information and brilliant ideas before now? Were they holding back their magnificent solutions to all our ills for selfish reasons? Or, are they making promises that they cannot keep? Whichever way you look at it, campaign promises are designed to comfort us and you know what they say about people who are comforted by promises. To be perfectly honest, we should all feel insulted.
LEAD THE COUNTRY
These are serious times and we don't want or need more empty promises; we need concrete solutions, we need results. It's no secret that Jamaicans feel let down by their politicians. People who don the mantle of leadership are expected to lead; lead the country out of debt, lead the country out of poverty and lead the country out of violence. Instead, all we are getting are promises on top of promises. It's amusing to see the candidates carefully tip toe around the sore topics. If they criticise the current failed policies then they would de facto be criticising themselves. But if they don't present something, anything new and innovative then they would be saying that they really and truly have nothing to offer us save someone else to call Prime Minister.
Dionne Warwick had a 1970s hit song titled, Promises, promises written and produced by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. Some of the words seem apt at this time. One verse reads, 'Oh, promises, their kind of promises, can just destroy a life'. The candidates need to remember that multitudes of people are hanging on to their every word, not just to vote them into 'power' but for results, for a better life, for peace and prosperity.
WRITING FOR SERVANTS
As speechwriters scour the recesses of their collective minds for catch phrases, for just the right words and just the right number of words, I hope that they keep in mind that they are writing for servants of the people and to the people who dare to hope that this time the politicians are for real. And, as the speech makers practice their art, as they pay close attention to the tone, tempo and inflections, as they dream about fame and power and secretly cringe at the responsibility, I hope that they remember that the well-being of millions of people are at stake.
If there must be promises then let them also promise to heed the people's cries and not to simply defend against criticisms. Let them also promise to take full responsibility for any administrative scandals and/or failures and to resign and hand over the reins to someone else for the good of the country should the task prove to be too much.
Dr Garth A. Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice.
