A Pragmatic Approach

In the midst of all the furore surrounding today’s elections, I wanted to present an alternative conceptualisation of the predicament we have got ourselves into in Trinidad.. a pragmatic alternative.

Our first consideration when deciding how we should vote, must be what we agree with each party on. Given that all three parties failed to present their Manifestos until 10 days prior to the election, this falls by the wayside. Essentially, we have not been offered any choice beyond vague references to decentralisation and a fondness of re-establishing the sugar industry. These are neither inclusive, nor ground-breaking, nor original ideas.

So we move on to the question of what is best for the country? I believe the one thing that we can all agree on is that neither the incumbent Government nor the Opposition have a particularly enviable record, and that on balance, they’re just about as bad as each other. One slightly more corrupt, one on balance, more incompetent. And then there is the promise of a “third-way;” a new party - the promise of a step away from the past. This would have been an ideal choice had it not been for a) them having no chance of forming the next government, b) their failure to deliver fresh, good ideas to the political environment, c) the party actually being funded and run by the existing Establishment.

What choices are we left with? I believe the only real choice we have is to maintain a policy of voting against the Government, until such time as they learn to improve their offering. So if Party A is in power, we vote for Party B; and then Party A at the following election. Perhaps, the frustration of political opposition might push them to develop. In this particular case you could argue that the Opposition bent more than it would have done 10 years ago (by forming an Alliance), and that is some improvement of the despotic tendencies we put up with last decade.

Of course, all this is upsetting in reality, because what we all want is a strong, dynamic, principled Government to lead the country forward. And this is where we come in… I’ve met so many talented, balanced, and able young Trinidadians, who are really passionate about their country, that I don’t believe for a second that we cannot turn our country’s fortunes around in time. The Next Generation has to bottle up all this frustration with our existing crop of second-rate leaders, and strategically focus it on developing our country. Forget the passion and sound-bites that define today’s politics; we need to start thinking, and creating new ideas that would allow a third party to realistically challenge the aristocrats of the status-quo.

Let me begin. I believe the only answer to the feudal problem of race politics is Proportional Representation. A coalition government of all the parties would move us beyond blaming each other for our perceived greater misfortunes. It would allow us to focus on the country as a whole, and defend minority interests against majority dictatorship. Proportional Representation and ‘inclusive politics’ need to be the ring words for whichever party forms the next government.

It is our job and moreover, our duty, to make sure the Government hear those rings, and I would encourage everyone of you to write to your MPs, the newspapers, and bend the ears of the Establishment wherever you can, to make this a reality. Let’s set a new agenda; let us take our country back as our own!

Piers Varley