There is obviously much to complain about in Jamaica as the country today marks its 46th anniversary of Independence: inadequate economic growth, a horrendous problem with crime and an under-performing education system are among the greatest worries. But something is unfolding of which the country can be proud and which holds in good stead for the future.

On Monday of this week, Mrs Portia Simpson Miller, the incumbent, and Dr Peter Phillips were nominated for the post of president of the People's National Party (PNP) in an internal election that is to take place next month. Eight persons were also nominated to contest the four vice-presidential slots.

There are many in the PNP, who are concerned about these contests, fearing that they might widen rifts in the party and hinder what they hope would be an early return to government, which it lost a year ago, after 18 years in power. Many in the wider community pass over the competition as 'mere politics', which, unfortunately, if not without reason, has developed a rather bad name in Jamaica. But there is a larger picture here.

Democratic challenge

First, the leader of a political party, who came to the job two and half years ago, is being subject to a democratic challenge and, in that regard, is having to justify her stewardship. There are many countries, in many parts of the world, where such internal contests are improbable and leaders are presumed to have patents on their jobs.

Significantly, while Jamaican political and other institutions of governance have, in the past, fallen under severe stress, as they did in the 1970s, they have never broken apart. We have been able to maintain, with its many imperfections, functional democracy. Indeed, many countries which became independent around the same time as Jamaica have been through long periods of dictatorship, and the current experience of Zimbabwe under Robert Mugabe underlines what can happen when systems and processes are derailed.

The leadership contest in the PNP also offers Jamaica something beyond the mere assertion of democracy within one organisation. The greater potential value lies in the opportunity for a robust debate about the future of the party and, by extension, the vision that each prospective leader holds out for Jamaica.

Fragile foundation

It is expected, and important that they do, that the contestants outline how they intend to adjust the paradigms to lift Jamaica out of what, by consensus, is a social and economic rut. Yet, those who would lead have a far more than fragile foundation on which to build. The real question, perhaps, is whether they have the fortitude and the capacity, having gained the reins, to accentuate those many things that remain positive about Jamaica and its people.

It is perhaps fortuitous that the PNP is formally launching its leadership campaign at this time, providing the contenders with a context and backdrop to consider why they want, and should be given, the job, heading into the 47th year of the country's Independence. It is a consideration that should not be lost on Prime Minister Golding or his government.

Perhaps, too, it is a question that committed Jamaicans should be placing, continuously, before our leaders.