Concession via news release

Published in the Jamaica Gleaner: Friday | September 7, 2007

Dennie Quill, Contributor

The 2007 general election will long be remembered for the television event that it was, so one wonders why after her 'non-concession' speech on Monday night Mrs. Simpson Miller did not return to the nation as she promised to make a concession and offer to work with the new Government in the name of Jamaica.

I was simply taken aback when the media reported that a concession had been made in the form of a news release. It is hard to put a positive face on bad news, but surely this is a disservice to the thousands of people who voted for the People's National Party (PNP). All of Jamaica wanted to hear from Mrs. Simpson Miller - live and direct. Losing an election that she expected to win handsomely must have disappointed the PNP president, but disappointment should be dwarfed by love of country. There comes a time to put aside the rancour of the political campaign and start the process of healing and unity. One should be gracious in defeat.

Jamaica voted for change

Even with the constitutional challenges that threaten to nullify some election victories, it is clear that the people of Jamaica have voted to change course. The close margins bear out my earlier comment that the electorate may conclude that their choice was to find the lesser of two evils. This is the will of the people, and the question of the better leader, or whether to change course, has been resolved through the honoured traditions of our democracy. So no one should begrudge the Jamaica Labour Party its victory.

Prime Minister-designate Bruce Golding made a statement which accords with the way I see things. He referred to the willingness of Jamaicans to accept mediocrity. I see it everywhere. When horrible things happen, people are prepared to shrug it off and say it could be worse, or they point fingers at some other place. This is how I feel about the Electoral Office. We pat Danvillle Walker on the back for a wonderful job when, if we are truthful, we will admit that the EOJ was really below par. Maybe the process was better than it has been, but we do have a long way to go. How can you celebrate a system which allows voters to wait in line for three hours to cast their ballots? At my polling station, there was much bungling. There were about four polling divisions in the building, yet there was no visible signage to direct voters to their polling division. Someone took chalk and marked a number on the concrete wall in front of the entrance, so you had to look down, virtually under someone's feet to determine your polling station. Madness.

Not so secret vote

There was also much delay because people did not have their ID cards. It took me under one minute to vote once I got into the room, because I was prepared. The Electoral Office should have stressed this in their ad campaign. And while we acclaim the secret vote, I was not satisfied that the electoral officials could not see where I had placed my X, the area for voting was not screened off, and the podium did not provide enough privacy. So that needsto be fixed. News reports indicate that there were other election day snafus, such as wrong lists being sent to some stations, acts of intimidation, late opening of stations and the lack of electricity to facilitate counting.

For many people in Jamaica, this will be a different September. Many who had grown accustomed to state privileges will now be just like the rest of us, without connection and influence. It means that a new breed of persons with experience, fresh ideas and opinions will be pressed into service. I would like to suggest to Mr. Golding that all persons selected to serve on public boards and organisations be given a crash course in corporate governance. They should be made to understand their responsibilities and fiduciary duties. They cannot do this without a basic understanding of the nature of the business.

Then there are the criminals among us, many of them reached for their guns on Monday night and fired wildly. There has to be an urgent campaign to get these guns off the streets and put these criminals out of business. I don't envy Bruce Golding one bit; he certainly won't have to worry about finding a seat at the swearing-in ceremony this time, but he has so many challenges.

Dennie Quill is a veteran journalist who may be reached at denniequill@hotmail.com.