Ugly wins, ugly losers

Published in the Jamaica Gleaner : Wednesday | September 5, 2007

Colin Steer, Associate Editor - Opinion

Football fans often console themselves in competitions like the World Cup tournament, that a scrappy, ugly win is always better than a loss, however well the losers might have played and the level of entertainment provided. From some perspectives the Jamaica Labour Party could be seen as the bigger losers in Monday's elections. They outspent and out-advertised their opponents who had shown much signs of being a tired, spent force after 18 years in office.

Objectively however, the JLP did better than the slim margin suggests. Based on the preliminary count, the party kept 25 of the 26 seats it held in the previous Parliament; lost the 26th by less than 60 votes; cut deeply into some traditional PNP areas like Manchester and St. Mary even where they still lost and captured at least seven seats from the previous governing party. So there was a clear swing to Labou not in the big way some would have expected, all factors considered. Bear in mind too that it starts any general election with a disadvantage - the PNP has at least seven garrison constituencies, locked solid from the get go. But the reality is that PNP support remains deep and wide, nationally.

Conundrum

Here then lies the conundrum facing not just Bruce Golding and the JLP but the country as a whole. If the JLP maintains its majority declared on Monday, and picks up even two more after the final count, its lead is still slim, enough to form a government, but requiring a careful walking through the raindrops. The challenge facing the country is whether, after it has done its analysis, applied balm to its wounds, and regrouped, the PNP will be inclined to be obstructionist, refusing to put the interest of the country ahead of partisan jockeying. Keeping a government on its toes is one thing, employing roadblocks as a way to regaining power is another. The JLP too cannot afford to have its energies dissipated by engaging in petty recriminations - it does not have the capital to do that.

Much has already been said about the lack of graciousness in Mrs. Simpson Miller's speech on Monday night. But one more thing should be added. It does not lie in the mouth of PNP politicians to talk about being the victims of voter intimidation by gun violence or vote buying etc. For it is a part of its machinery to employ those same tactics where it thinksthey are effective. The examples in Jamaica's political history are innumerable. At their core, none of our parties is enveloped in holy vestments.

Other realities

That being said, if the JLP maintains its lead and does not soon lose any of its 'winners' in court over questions of their swearing allegiance to a foreign government, there are other realities facing it. There will be no honeymoon. At the national level - Bruce Golding will be faced with a deficit in the love and admiration department. Many people will not be prepared to be patient with him - especially given the promises on the election trail. Long before the PNP has regrouped, there will be sniper shots directed at the new government, not the least from sections of the media. They will have to keep their heads down and govern with a sense of purpose that the national good is paramount and not just electoral victories.

Of course, whenever there is any successful venture, paternity is in dispute. Many people will want to be rewarded for the part they played or think they played in helping the JLP to be victorious. How well Mr. Golding handles the many demands that will be made on him, will determine how well he succeeds over the next few years, again, all things being equal. Without being paranoid, he would do well to consider that the knives that 'jook, jook up' Mr. Seaga's hands to make him let go of the party's throne, may not have been sheathed. Searing ambition knows no loyalties.