Tag Archives: UNC

A reader, who enjoys the historical perspective contained in many of these columns, asked me recently whether there is a program that I use to source those of my columns written many years ago. The answer is that as a weekly columnist writing in the information age for 21 years, …

In a column published 20 years ago, in mid-May 2003, I described the subject of crime as priority numbers one, two, three, four, five and six. The column went on to identify to which aspect of crime each of the numbers related. Number one was, of course, the murder rate. …

“If a political party does not have its foundation in the determination to advance a cause that is right and that is moral, then it is not a political party; it is merely a conspiracy to seize power.” Dwight D Eisenhower, March 1956. I recalled this Eisenhower quote as I …

As was widely expected, the local government elections (LGE) resulted in a repeat of the control of the 14 local government bodies being split 7-7 between the PNM and UNC. Crumbs of votes were sprinkled on the minor parties. We have reconfirmed our propensity to condemn ourselves to continued political …

At the core of democracy is the vote. This single act is how we, the voters, signal how we feel to the politicians and their parties. It is a means of control. When we vote, we tell the nation which candidate we want and which policies or programmes are crucial. …

This week saw the eruption of meaningless narratives that do not help us to become the best we can be. How do we expect our citizens to dream of becoming better? We get seduced by rhetoric that induces hatred and possibly violence. When will we seek what is in our …

There were two disturbing events in a week when the nation needed to be reflective because of the anniversaries of 27 July and Emancipation Day. The first was the re-publication of a Jamaica Observer column by Lisa Hanna about the Jamaica bank debacle, and the second was the re-emergence of …

“[…] We now have the triumvirate or the three-headed Hydra of Gary Griffith, Jack Warner and Kamla Persad-Bissessar. One was police commissioner whose response to the beating death of an accused in custody while he was commissioner was: ‘he fell off a chair’. “[…] The other (a one-time acting prime …

The last time local government elections were held on 2 December 2019, there were 139 electoral districts. On 14 August, there will be 141, to be contested by 373 candidates—barring any withdrawals. Only 34.7 per cent (374,878) of the electorate (1,079,976) cast their ballots on that occasion. It is not …

Disappointment and impatience cloak our land in the run-up to the Local Government elections. Oh, Gorm Man! When will we get serious about our life, children, and future? A Lloyd Best quote captures our dilemma, which is the appalling lack of imagination and gravitas to tackle our nation’s problems: “[…] …

“[…] Dr Eric Williams was referring to people who preceded Basdeo Panday that were moving mountains to divide the country in an obscene manner to get the support of the East Indians at home and abroad–all in the quest for political power based on race. “[…] When Panday talks about …

There is a new example of political truth being stranger than fiction. It is that it takes two very wobbly Attorneys General to make a distrusted Opposition look good. When it was not trying to pretend that the outcome of the recent case in the Privy Council (the PC) was …