The Great Disconnect

One can be a brother only in something. Where there is no tie that binds men, Men are not united but merely lined up.

 

 

– Antoine de Saint-Exupery

 

We thought we were witnessing a new phenomenon among the electorate – an uncharacteristic early withdrawal of support for a newly elected Prime Minister and Government. Then we happened across the words of the author of The Little Prince and knew immediately that the fault lay not with a demanding electorate but with a leader and a Government that have become disconnected with the people in world record time.

Take the Prime Minister’s most recent attempt at a gold medal performance – his announcement that he plans to scrap the Independence Day Parade. Bajans are already relegating this idea to the dustbin. They do not take kindly to people trifling with their national symbols and traditions. Add all you want to our Independence celebrations, but do not subtract the things that have become an important part of our national heritage for purely crass political reasons.

In his zeal to create a legacy and make his mark on the political landscape, the Prime Minister needs to holster his gun and stop shooting from the hip with such regularity. His attempts to stamp his authority on his Cabinet and the country are costing the taxpayers millions of dollars. For starters, perhaps his Senate appointee Derek Alleyne could give him a crash course in industrial relations and how not to dismiss people in public when he does not have the legal authority to do so. Legacies rarely hinge on cosmetic changes, although, having observed the Prime Minister’s approach to politics over the life of his political career, we cannot say we are surprised by his present modus operandi. The fact that he finally succeeded in lining up a team of men and women behind him should not be confused with unity or leadership on his part.

The cracks are already beginning to show, with reports of threatened resignations, the non-performance of some people and the public discord with the Minister of Health on whether we should have a new hospital or refurbish the existing structure.

The Nation’s weekly poll will soon tell us how Bajans feel on this matter. The Prime Minister would do well to make these polls part of his weekly required reading. They are wonderful snapshots of national feeling on diverse issues.

This is how Bajans view their Government so far.

* 71 per cent gave the Government a failing grade for its first 100 days performance;

* 85 per cent gave it a failing grade on the petroleum price increases;

* 55 per cent feel the Government’s position on flyovers is wrong;

* 71 per cent said the Budget was poor;

* 100 per cent support the declaration of assets by politicians and senior public servants as done by the Leader of Opposition and the former prime minister;

* 80 per cent do not agree with the DLP’s position on flogging;

* 75 per cent do not agree with the Prime Minister that PSVs should set their own fares.

The disconnect is clearly there and not even the $155 000 part-time political adviser seems capable of reversing the trend. Of course, sometimes winning is the easy part. It’s what you do after, like Peter Wickham said, that ensures another term in office.

Someone sent us a refashioned version of an old familiar nursery rhyme about Tom, The Piper’s Son that seems relevant in the present circumstances.

“Davie, Davie you son of a gun

“You won a Government and couldn’t get it run.”

Now there’s an idea for a Nation poll