A time for responsible leadership

Published in the Jamaica Gleaner: Sunday | August 26, 2007

We are glad that a date has been set for the general election. It is to be regretted that the Prime Minister and the Cabinet appear to have been so indecisive in turning around the recommendation of the professional, competent and highly respected bi-partisan Electoral Commission.

Let us hope that the election can now be conducted in an environment of peace and harmony.

We are also happy to see that the public state of emergency has been lifted, for as we have maintained throughout last week, this was an extreme measure taken in circumstances that did not warrant it.

On the horizon, there is also a possibility that this election will not be decisive because of the likely disqualification of a number of elected parliamentary members who are not qualified to sit in Parliament. These are persons in contravention of Section 41(2) of the Constitution because they are under an acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign state.

No effort has been made historically to enforce this constitutional requirement. The fault starts with the nomination process that should have required a suitable declaration from candidates - most of whom appear to be ignorant of the requirement. The two parties have been negligent in allowing ineligible candidates to stand for election.

Any person can legally challenge these elected representatives. It is our understanding that if challenged, the courts will disqualify the members and so create the need for a by-election. It remains to be seen whether there will be four, six or 10 by-elections. We do not know the number, but it is time that the number was known to the electorate because these by-elections might well determine the party that holds the majority in Parliament. This is particularly likely if the new government wins with only a small majority.

We could be facing a situation in which Party X wins a majority in the general election only to find this reversed by the by-elections created by disqualification underSection 41(2).

In any event, the country could face a con-tinuing state of active electioneering in multiple constituencies for the next say nine months - six months to obtain a court ruling and three months of specific campaigning. Where will the funding come from for these campaigns?

Outside of that, opinion polls suggest an extremely close race at this time. It is imperative that the two parties meet to negotiate how the next elected government would govern in a time of uncertainty. Responsible leaders will address this issue now before we head for national crisis. Civil society should do all it can to create this dialogue.

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