By Louis EA Moyston:
In recent months, weeks and days we have been listening to news on American politics and the search for a compromise. The history of this word is rooted in American politics from the Constitutional Convention in the post-1776 period to the civil war of the 1860s. The American system of government is based on a compromise - a reasonable agreement between two or more parties. The emergent Tea Party politics that has fuelled the Republican Party has outlined the ideological framework for the Republicans in Washington, creating an inflexible political atmosphere. It is this ideology that has caused the stalemate - the ideological thrust has no room for compromise because their inflexibility is rooted in the idea that they must get rid of Barack Obama, making him a one-term president.
Just look at the BRICS nations and you will understand the magnitude of America's problem. America has lost its industrial edge and has been in two major wars that have been sucking the nation's resources. This combination has led to the decline of the USA. If they manage to get rid of Obama, a nativistic agenda will emerge in the USA - blacks and foreigners will become the focal point of their aggression. Norway has given us an important lesson. The weakness of the sharing of power in the US government may require new reforms regarding decision-making of this nature.
There is a rich history of compromise in American politics. It was the compromise between the Virginia and the New Jersey plans on the idea for the system of government as it is today. Other major compromises - 1820, 1850 and 1877 - more or less had to do with slavery, the politics of the South and the new territories in the West. American politics is built on compromises - the ability for parties or others to arrive at a reasonable conclusion; it is about making deals.
Interestingly, many of the compromises in the past had to do with slavery. This is a history that Obama has to live with. The objective of the Tea Party-led Republicans is to get rid of Obama by bringing the government to its knees at all costs. It is important to look at the Tea Party and its last election campaign. There was a convergence of traditional right-wingers and Tea Party adherents in a campaign to demonise Obama. They insisted that he was not an American citizen and that he intended to apply the "Kenyan model" to America. There are two leading Tea Party women in the Republican Party who spend their time describing Obama as a person who lacks the capacity to lead. What is evident is not a new plan but the right-wing ideology that is linked to the fact that they cannot stand to see a black man in the White House. The world was in awe - the morning after - when Barack Obama became the president of the USA, and so too were many Americans. Obama has the capacity to lead. Indeed, he is among four great intellects of the American presidency - Lincoln, Wilson and Clinton. I write not as a fan of Obama but I respect his intellect and his story.
Generally speaking, political parties in America are different from political parties in England, Norway, Sweden, Germany and Jamaica. Parties in America are renewed, re-energised and re-inspired by external "locomotives". In recent decades there have been two clear regroupings of conservatives to play a "revolutionary" role in American politics. In the 1980s there was the emergence of the role of interest and lobby groups and their use of the media to influence American politics in their ideological interest. In the 1980s it was about the "Reagan revolution" and today in another "revolutionary" coat there is Tea Party politics. It was the surge of the Tea Party that significantly assisted the victory of the Republicans in the mid-term elections that put the Republicans in a leading political role on Washington. There is nothing easy about politics, but it is wise to defend a position as an end and not as a means. To treat political decisions like desire-satisfying desires is far from doing the right thing for the right reason. There is that inclination to remove Obama that has landed American politics in a morass of moral pollution.
It is important to look at America beyond Obama. Who landed the country where it is now? Who landed America in two major wars costing the country much of its wealth in a period when America was unable to create adequate wealth to satisfy its appetite? There are some practical things for the Americans to be concerned about like increasing (not regaining) its competitive edge. It must produce more scientists and increase the role of science and technology in national development. By not recognising American current weaknesses, right-wingers aim their anger at blacks and immigrants for America's declining and decaying economy. Other implications include the use of right-wing politics to invade and capture strategic resources from the developing countries. The European aspect of nativistic politics was illustrated by that mass killer in Norway on July 22.. Ominous clouds are on the horizon of American politics.
Louis EA Moyston
thearchives01@yahoo.com
Saturday, July 30, 2011
jamaicaobserver
An International Caribbean Online Log about the news and opinions in the Americas and World. This Caribbean Blog of global reach and appeal is maintained by Bahamian Blogger - Dennis Dames with all readers and subscribers in mind.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Jamaica... Scrap metal ban: a concession to disorder
jamaica-gleaner editorial
We are in sympathy with Mr Karl Samuda's position on the decision by his successor, Dr Christopher Tufton, to shut down the scrap metal industry and ban the export of the stuff.
It smacks, as Mr Samuda says, of "surrendering to the rogue elements". Put another way, the move represents another retreat of law and order.
We, of course, do not presume that the conundrum presented to Dr Tufton, the recently appointed investment and commerce minister, was to be easily traversed or solved. Nor did it develop under his watch.
For Mr Samuda had struggled with the problem of damage to infrastructure and theft by scavengers, who rustle metal of all kinds to cash in on the high price for scrap on the world market.
Indeed, Dr Tufton estimates that utility companies and other legitimate businesses, including government agencies, have lost up to J$1 billion in material over the past three years to metal thieves, who sometimes rip down power and telecommunications equipment, with negative consequences to economic productivity. The problem grew worse as the availability of scrap metal declined, as the price of the commodity hiked and more players entered the business.
Damning Statement on Insecurity
The Government's decision to shut down the sector ought to give the average Jamaican no joy, no matter the spin of the administration, and even if it has the desired effect of curbing the pillaging and defacement. For the decision is a statement about insecurity in our country; a tacit admission by the State of its inability to protect either public or private property.
This is precisely the point we sought to make when Mr Samuda, then the responsible minister, recovered, by private initiative, a stolen priceless bronze sculpture by Edna Manley that was reportedly on its way to being scrap metal export. No one, in so far as we are aware, was ever arrested, charged, prosecuted or convicted for that theft. Mr Samuda, it appears, has come around to an appreciation of the dangerous consequences of this kind of surrender "to the rogue elements".
That, notwithstanding, it is difficult for us to believe that it is beyond the capacity of our Government to ensure, within the context of a system of free enterprise, the orderly operation of a sector of a few dozen people.
Bad signal
If the Jamaican State can't manage this, what ought the mass of the Jamaican people to assume about its ability to preserve their safety and to protect the right of individual property and, more important, the maintenance of law and order, which is the primary responsibility of the State?
But supposing that Dr Tufton's finger-in-the-dyke solution suffices for now, his longer-term proposal for the export of scrap metal seems problematic.
Companies that generate scrap metal will be allowed, according to the minister, to apply for permits to export that scrap. This suggests that these firms will be forced into a line of business outside their core portfolio.
And what of other scrap metal generated by households or by firms that don't have the capacity to organise their own export? We, perhaps, can look forward to there being plenty of scrap with which to block roads while people demand justice.
July 28, 2011
jamaica-gleaner editorial
We are in sympathy with Mr Karl Samuda's position on the decision by his successor, Dr Christopher Tufton, to shut down the scrap metal industry and ban the export of the stuff.
It smacks, as Mr Samuda says, of "surrendering to the rogue elements". Put another way, the move represents another retreat of law and order.
We, of course, do not presume that the conundrum presented to Dr Tufton, the recently appointed investment and commerce minister, was to be easily traversed or solved. Nor did it develop under his watch.
For Mr Samuda had struggled with the problem of damage to infrastructure and theft by scavengers, who rustle metal of all kinds to cash in on the high price for scrap on the world market.
Indeed, Dr Tufton estimates that utility companies and other legitimate businesses, including government agencies, have lost up to J$1 billion in material over the past three years to metal thieves, who sometimes rip down power and telecommunications equipment, with negative consequences to economic productivity. The problem grew worse as the availability of scrap metal declined, as the price of the commodity hiked and more players entered the business.
Damning Statement on Insecurity
The Government's decision to shut down the sector ought to give the average Jamaican no joy, no matter the spin of the administration, and even if it has the desired effect of curbing the pillaging and defacement. For the decision is a statement about insecurity in our country; a tacit admission by the State of its inability to protect either public or private property.
This is precisely the point we sought to make when Mr Samuda, then the responsible minister, recovered, by private initiative, a stolen priceless bronze sculpture by Edna Manley that was reportedly on its way to being scrap metal export. No one, in so far as we are aware, was ever arrested, charged, prosecuted or convicted for that theft. Mr Samuda, it appears, has come around to an appreciation of the dangerous consequences of this kind of surrender "to the rogue elements".
That, notwithstanding, it is difficult for us to believe that it is beyond the capacity of our Government to ensure, within the context of a system of free enterprise, the orderly operation of a sector of a few dozen people.
Bad signal
If the Jamaican State can't manage this, what ought the mass of the Jamaican people to assume about its ability to preserve their safety and to protect the right of individual property and, more important, the maintenance of law and order, which is the primary responsibility of the State?
But supposing that Dr Tufton's finger-in-the-dyke solution suffices for now, his longer-term proposal for the export of scrap metal seems problematic.
Companies that generate scrap metal will be allowed, according to the minister, to apply for permits to export that scrap. This suggests that these firms will be forced into a line of business outside their core portfolio.
And what of other scrap metal generated by households or by firms that don't have the capacity to organise their own export? We, perhaps, can look forward to there being plenty of scrap with which to block roads while people demand justice.
July 28, 2011
jamaica-gleaner editorial
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Ideas and ideals of national youth service (NYS) in The Bahamas
Ideas and ideals of national youth service
thenassauguardian editorial
Nassau, Bahamas
There are some ideas many claim to understand, but which few actually do, such as national youth service (NYS), which the country should better define before moving ahead with any new initiatives that bear the name but have little resemblance to more authentic models of NYS.
In defining an idea, it’s clarifying to acknowledge what it isn’t. Efforts to rehabilitate non-violent juvenile offenders or provide alternative programs for school-age youth the public education system is unable “to handle” have been wrongly defined and mislabeled as national youth service.
Military and penal oriented programs are not examples of NYS. The former Youth Empowerment and Skills Training Institute (YEAST), for all its merits, though not without its problems is similarly not a form of NYS. Despite criticisms, those who initiated, built and supported YEAST deserve our gratitude.
While successive governments have spoken eloquently of the importance of NYS, they have failed to define the concept. But, despite this lack of clarity, there has been an enduring effort to provide our young people with opportunities to contribute to the common good through community service.
This spirit has produced fine programs such as the Girl Guides, Kiwanis’ Key Clubs and an impressive list of private efforts to develop character and promote active citizenship among our youth.
But these laudable programs are also not NYS. National youth service by its definition is broader based involving significant numbers of young people.
Whether we realize it or not, the country has already developed a form of NYS, namely, the mandatory community service program in our public and most of our private secondary schools.
This is an example of having a good thing and not recognizing its goodness, especially with regards to the thousands of hours of service thousands of Bahamian youth have already given to the nation.
But this good idea, yet underdeveloped program, is quite flawed in terms of its mission, direction, oversight and effectiveness. We have to make this good thing even better by holding these school-based programs to a higher standard and providing them with clearer guidelines and better management and accountability.
While there are other forms of NYS that can be geared towards college and post-college young people, and should be thought through, the country already has a national youth service infrastructure, namely, our junior and secondary schools filled with all of the nation’s youth, to whom we can provide myriad citizenship building and community service-learning experiences.
Our national challenge is not to launch new programs that check-off some box called national youth service, but to take what we already have and dramatically revise it so that the promise of NYS, already realized in some form, can more fully fulfill the idea and ideals of national youth service of which we have long dreamed.
Jul 26, 2011
thenassauguardian editorial
thenassauguardian editorial
Nassau, Bahamas
There are some ideas many claim to understand, but which few actually do, such as national youth service (NYS), which the country should better define before moving ahead with any new initiatives that bear the name but have little resemblance to more authentic models of NYS.
In defining an idea, it’s clarifying to acknowledge what it isn’t. Efforts to rehabilitate non-violent juvenile offenders or provide alternative programs for school-age youth the public education system is unable “to handle” have been wrongly defined and mislabeled as national youth service.
Military and penal oriented programs are not examples of NYS. The former Youth Empowerment and Skills Training Institute (YEAST), for all its merits, though not without its problems is similarly not a form of NYS. Despite criticisms, those who initiated, built and supported YEAST deserve our gratitude.
While successive governments have spoken eloquently of the importance of NYS, they have failed to define the concept. But, despite this lack of clarity, there has been an enduring effort to provide our young people with opportunities to contribute to the common good through community service.
This spirit has produced fine programs such as the Girl Guides, Kiwanis’ Key Clubs and an impressive list of private efforts to develop character and promote active citizenship among our youth.
But these laudable programs are also not NYS. National youth service by its definition is broader based involving significant numbers of young people.
Whether we realize it or not, the country has already developed a form of NYS, namely, the mandatory community service program in our public and most of our private secondary schools.
This is an example of having a good thing and not recognizing its goodness, especially with regards to the thousands of hours of service thousands of Bahamian youth have already given to the nation.
But this good idea, yet underdeveloped program, is quite flawed in terms of its mission, direction, oversight and effectiveness. We have to make this good thing even better by holding these school-based programs to a higher standard and providing them with clearer guidelines and better management and accountability.
While there are other forms of NYS that can be geared towards college and post-college young people, and should be thought through, the country already has a national youth service infrastructure, namely, our junior and secondary schools filled with all of the nation’s youth, to whom we can provide myriad citizenship building and community service-learning experiences.
Our national challenge is not to launch new programs that check-off some box called national youth service, but to take what we already have and dramatically revise it so that the promise of NYS, already realized in some form, can more fully fulfill the idea and ideals of national youth service of which we have long dreamed.
Jul 26, 2011
thenassauguardian editorial
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
The Norway Massacre - The new face of domestic terrorism
By Rebecca Theodore
A terrorist attack in Oslo, Norway! No, it’s not. It’s unrelated to al Qaeda or any other terror movement. It is the work of one of its own citizens. It is the work of a madman.
Situated in the western part of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Norway’s constitutional monarchy style government feared nothing from attacks by Islamic militants.
Even though there has been threats that Norway supported the American-led NATO military operation in Afghanistan by the number two leader of Al Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahri, who took over after the death of Osama bin Laden; the scene of panicking people and blown out windows of several government buildings, lay far from the minds of the ordinary working people of Oslo. Instead, they looked forward to enjoying the long days of summer and the glories of the midnight sun.
Now that American counterterrorism officials have cautioned that Norway’s own homegrown extremist, Anders Behring Breivik is responsible for the attacks; President Obama’s plea to ‘work cooperatively together both on intelligence and in terms of prevention of these kinds of horrible attacks’ opens the floodgate on domestic terrorism in America and around the world.
Whereas this cautionary tale distracts the American people from the debt ceiling crisis and the failures of the economy, it extends beyond the perpetuated myth of political scientists and sociologists that all Muslims are terrorists and the compressed hysteria and outpouring of hate for Islam and Muslims.
According to Oslo acting chief of police, Sveinung Sponheim, Mr Breivik is not known to have any ties to Islamic extremists, speculating instead that the target was Norway’s liberal government.
Anders Behring Breivik was ‘an army of one’ with a full-fledged ideology that he held together – an ideology that motivated him to stalk youths and open fire on an island summer camp for young members of the governing Labour Party and the government building in Norway.
Anders Behring Breivik committed a terrorist act, yet he is not labeled a violent radical terrorist but rather ‘a right wing Christian fundamentalist.’ Although the atrocity is more politically motivated rather than religious or probably just a prolonged state of mental illness, a new definition of terrorism has been created in the media for other copycats to mimic.
It cannot be denied that we live in a bigoted world. Muslim radicals have a great record of creating havoc and murdering innocent individuals. However, it is clear that if a Muslim was involved then it would have been labeled a terror attack, but because it came from a white Christian man, terrorism is baptized and sanctified with a new aphorism.
It is evident that language again serves its own purpose by entertaining the whims of a blockade type mentality that fuels more antagonism and bitterness for home grown recruiting camps in the US and the Caribbean, thus making them more inward looking and more open to religious extremism.
As a replacement for addressing the vehement revolt of disturbed individuals who use violence against civilians to satisfy their own political ends against elected governments, the media has again detached the issue away from its socio-political context by enforcing the culture of victimhood against Muslims. Muslims are again portrayed as the one stop cause for the myriad of problems facing the world today.
Mr Breivik’s actions have puzzled a nation known for its active diplomacy and peacekeeping missions in the world. For America on the other hand, it is time to look within.
July 26, 2011
caribbeannewsnow
A terrorist attack in Oslo, Norway! No, it’s not. It’s unrelated to al Qaeda or any other terror movement. It is the work of one of its own citizens. It is the work of a madman.
Situated in the western part of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Norway’s constitutional monarchy style government feared nothing from attacks by Islamic militants.
Even though there has been threats that Norway supported the American-led NATO military operation in Afghanistan by the number two leader of Al Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahri, who took over after the death of Osama bin Laden; the scene of panicking people and blown out windows of several government buildings, lay far from the minds of the ordinary working people of Oslo. Instead, they looked forward to enjoying the long days of summer and the glories of the midnight sun. Now that American counterterrorism officials have cautioned that Norway’s own homegrown extremist, Anders Behring Breivik is responsible for the attacks; President Obama’s plea to ‘work cooperatively together both on intelligence and in terms of prevention of these kinds of horrible attacks’ opens the floodgate on domestic terrorism in America and around the world.
Whereas this cautionary tale distracts the American people from the debt ceiling crisis and the failures of the economy, it extends beyond the perpetuated myth of political scientists and sociologists that all Muslims are terrorists and the compressed hysteria and outpouring of hate for Islam and Muslims.
According to Oslo acting chief of police, Sveinung Sponheim, Mr Breivik is not known to have any ties to Islamic extremists, speculating instead that the target was Norway’s liberal government.
Anders Behring Breivik was ‘an army of one’ with a full-fledged ideology that he held together – an ideology that motivated him to stalk youths and open fire on an island summer camp for young members of the governing Labour Party and the government building in Norway.
Anders Behring Breivik committed a terrorist act, yet he is not labeled a violent radical terrorist but rather ‘a right wing Christian fundamentalist.’ Although the atrocity is more politically motivated rather than religious or probably just a prolonged state of mental illness, a new definition of terrorism has been created in the media for other copycats to mimic.
It cannot be denied that we live in a bigoted world. Muslim radicals have a great record of creating havoc and murdering innocent individuals. However, it is clear that if a Muslim was involved then it would have been labeled a terror attack, but because it came from a white Christian man, terrorism is baptized and sanctified with a new aphorism.
It is evident that language again serves its own purpose by entertaining the whims of a blockade type mentality that fuels more antagonism and bitterness for home grown recruiting camps in the US and the Caribbean, thus making them more inward looking and more open to religious extremism.
As a replacement for addressing the vehement revolt of disturbed individuals who use violence against civilians to satisfy their own political ends against elected governments, the media has again detached the issue away from its socio-political context by enforcing the culture of victimhood against Muslims. Muslims are again portrayed as the one stop cause for the myriad of problems facing the world today.
Mr Breivik’s actions have puzzled a nation known for its active diplomacy and peacekeeping missions in the world. For America on the other hand, it is time to look within.
July 26, 2011
caribbeannewsnow
Monday, July 25, 2011
Welcome to the new secretary general of the CARICOM secretariat
By Ian Francis
Ambassador La Rocque’s appointment as secretary general of the CARICOM Secretariat is welcome news and is worthy of my support. I have no doubt that he will serve the secretariat and regional governments in a deserving manner. While his appointment is a boost for the Organizati on of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), his presence as a senior sailor on the ongoing turbulent ship of the Secretariat cannot be ignored. He opted to say aboard and as a result he has now achieved the task of being at the helm. So what next, Ambassador?
What can the new secretary general do that will not only impress his Council of Ambassadors but also the diverse populations and institutions in the region. Many suggestions and ideas have been expressed in the past but apparently fell on deaf ears. It is sincerely hoped that Ambassador La Rocque has re-tuned his GSP and will listen to the growing cries for radical reform within the Secretariat.
There is no doubt that the new secretary general and chairperson of CARICOM share similar vision on the need for change and renewal in the organization. However, this is not enough as the chronic problem lies within the inability of other regional heads to seriously embrace change and move forward. Without their concurrence and engagement for renewal within the organization, it will be extremely difficult for the secretary general and chairperson to implement anything new that will allow the organization to move forward. Let’s not ignore the possible existing reality that many regional heads may not be interested in any form of organizational tinkering.
At the inter-sectional meeting in Grenada a few months ago, regional heads arrived and left with a newly coined term of “Council of Ambassadors:” Since then little has been heard about the Council of Ambassadors. Recently, at the annual July pow-wow held in St Kitts, there was no mention of the Council of Ambassadors in the final communiqué of the pow-wow. This begs the question, has the concept of the Council received its burial certificate or is the wake still in progress? Answers are needed so the population of the region can understand what is taking place.
Returning to the challenge of the new secretary general, it is felt that there are a number of administrative and operational matters that he can immediately tackle. There must be a halt to the growing gravy train within the Secretariat. No multilateral agency should become so dependent on project funding, especially when such funding becomes self seeking and is geared to support certain staffing measures. It is an early warning; however, the Secretary General must recognize it will become crashing one day.
Recently, there were some sobering comments by Barbados Prime Minister Stuart with respect to the Secretariat’s reliance on foreign funding, which makes up 57% of the Secretariat’s operational budget. He suggested that other ways must be examined in order to enhance the Secretariat’s ability in decreasing its dependence on foreign donors.
Prime Minister Stuart’s comments are very reassuring; I have always felt that CARICOM’s inability to assist member states had nothing to do with technical capacity but rather being encumbered in a grantsmanship survival mode. Donor funding for irrelevant projects became the norm in order for the Secretariat to be maintained administratively. In spite of the vulgarity of this approach, some understanding and support must be afforded to the Secretariat because there is no way that CARICOM members can mobilize sufficient financial resources to support the Secretariat. If some member states cannot even meet a timely and consistent method for disbursing operational funds to their foreign missions, then how on earth can they adequately maintain the Georgetown outfit?
It is fully recognized and expected that the CARICOM Secretariat will continue its grantsmanship strategy to ensure protection of staff and friendly consultants. However, with fairness and sensitivity to the ongoing needs of member states, the Secretariat ought to be doing some more planning with member states about the type of projects that funding is being sought for. It is essential that member states be the beneficiaries and outcomes are filtered down to populations. Too often, there is a tendency for the CARICOM Secretariat to be engaged in initiatives that member states know little about.
So, Mr Secretary General, your tasks are clearly defined and it is hoped that you can get to work quickly. Here are some of my suggestions that should be placed on your priority list:
-- Urging of member states to appoint diplomatic representatives to the Secretariat so there is a collective grouping that you can interface with regularly, in and between ministerial and Council of Ambassadors pow-wow. .
-- Address overstaffing and incompetence within the Secretariat. There must be some trimming and streamlining done immediately.
-- Reviews, reorganization and elimination of some of the unproductive regional institutions that fall under the ambit of the Secretariat.
-- An immediate resolution of the internal administrative problems at IMPACS. A swift resolution could bring immediate relief to the suspended former executive director. Also, a full and urgent review of this agency is required to determine its future operations and mandate.
-- The ongoing saga pertaining to the lack of membership in the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) is a burning issue that should not be ignored. A political strategy or mechanism must be put in place to ensure membership of all CARICOM members.
Finally, good luck in your new endeavours and I sincerely hope that the leaders of the regional agency will function as a timely and serious governing body.
July 25, 2011
caribbeannewsnow
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Old problems for Caricom's New Secretary General of the Guyana-based Secretariat... Irwin LaRocque
Old problems for Caricom's New SG
‘Cool’ guy in a ‘hot’ seat
BY RICKEY SINGH
THE formal appointment of Irwin LaRocque as the new secretary general of the Guyana-based Caricom Secretariat is expected to be completed this week with a letter from current Community chairman Dr Denzil Douglas, the prime minister of St Kitts and Nevis.
For almost six years, starting in September 2005, the Dominican-born economist has been functioning as one of three assistant secretaries general of the 38-year-old Community. His chief responsibility was Trade and Economic Integration.
At 56, LaRocque's choice as SG has come as a surprise to officials of various regional organisations, who prefer not to be quoted, as well as to the Community Secretariat staffers, who prefer to comment more on his "politeness" and "respect for procedures" within the administrative structure than on other factors.
He was chosen from a shortlist of five candidates, submitted by a "search committee" that was established by the Heads of Government last August following the decision of Edwin Carrington to retire at the end of 2010 after 18 years as secretary general. That development itself took place against the backdrop of what some have euphemistically termed a " very frank dialogue" in Jamaica involving Carrington and then Caricom chairman Prime Minister Bruce Golding.
So, after some ten months of work by a "search committee" whose terms of reference, including the required skills and expertise of a new secretary general, were never clearly outlined as public information, the five shortlisted candidates were interviewed by the Caricom Bureau and, finally, by a process of telephone conversations, LaRocque was announced as the new secretary general.
As some highly respected and experienced regional technocrats and thinkers see it, Caricom's 15 Heads of Government now have a new SG on board in the person of an "in-house" appointee, but are still far removed from dealing with the pivotal factor to which they themselves have often referred -- the urgent need for a "comprehensive review" of the structure and functioning of the Secretariat.
Comprehensive' change
Although they had at their disposal a range of mandated studies and reports by reputable West Indian thinkers on how to make governance of the Community relevant to current regional and international demands, the Caricom leaders simply failed to pay heed to recommendations and opted instead to appoint a United Kingdom-based consultancy firm, Landell Mills Ltd, to provide them with a report on what should be done.
The three-member team comprised two foreigners -- Richard Stoneman. 'management consultant'; and Hugo Inniss, 'financial management expert' -- with Duke Pollard, retired Guyana-born jurist of the Caribbean Court of Justice and former Caricom official, as the third member.
Their terms of reference require the development of a "set of recommendations that would, when implemented, secure the comprehensive restructuring of the Caricom Secretariat and enhance its capacity to carry out its administrative, technical and other functions as prescribed by the Revised Treaty" of the Community.
The jargon is familiar -- in usage for at least a dozen years -- but it may be revealing to learn who participated in shaping the terms of reference of this latest "review team" on the future structure and functioning of the Community Secretariat, which continues to limp along, year after year, with policies neglected and programmes/projects deferred.
Both the new secretary general as well as the current Community chairman, Prime Minister Douglas, who has glowingly declared LaRocque as possessing "the requisite skills of visionary leadership, courage and commitment to guide the Community at this time of change and uncertainty", would be fully aware of the harsh realities that have been affecting the governance of Caricom's affairs these many years.
General 'ineffectiveness'
This ineffectiveness which would be intolerable for any serious management structure in the private sector is spread across the operations of Caricom and include the declining efficiency and required commitment to creative initiatives from the Community's primary organ -- the Heads of Government -- to its Directorates (Foreign and Community Relations; Regional Trade and Economic Integration and Human and Social Development).
When LaRocque formally assumes duty as new secretary general, his post will become vacant. The post of assistant secretary general for Human and Social Development has been vacant for some months now, and soon too will be the assistant secretary general for Foreign and Community Relations post.
In short, the Caricom Secretariat is lurching from one set of management problems to another as its political directorate makes good on talk, but acts poorly in carrying out policies and programmes.
It was inevitable that someone had to be chosen to replace Edwin Carrington. LaRocque is that choice. But the major problem continues to stare us all: a Secretariat clearly adrift in a sea of management problems and a regional integration movement beset by political leadership in dire need of re-energising.
As a journalist of the Caribbean region, sharing the hopes of committed professional colleagues, it is left for me to also extend best wishes to LaRocque whose "politeness" and capacity to "be cool", at times of tension and excitement, I also recognise. Time will tell how comfortably he occupies the SG's 'hot chair'.
LAROCQUE... Caricom's new secretary general
July 24, 2011
jamaicaobserver
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Bahamas: Whether or not a Bahamian decides to vote in the next general election, we all should register... Voting rights were fought for... We must all honor the sacrifice of the generations before us who struggled to ensure that there would be a fair electoral process...
Keep registering to vote
thenassauguardian editorial
Nassau, Bahamas
More than 100,000 Bahamians have already registered to vote. The Parliamentary Registration Department hopes to register 160,000 to 170,000 people to vote for the next general election. Considering that an election is not imminent – we likely have several months to go – we will likely reach the target set or come very close to it. Bahamians should know that they can register up until an election is called.
Whether or not a person decides to vote, we all should register. Many are unhappy with the two main political parties, and a good chunk of that group may ultimately decide not to vote. That is their democratic right. However, it would be wise nonetheless to still register.
By registering you give yourself a choice. At the last minute, a few days before the election, something may happen to make you want to vote for a candidate, or party or to vote against a candidate or party. You cannot make this decision if you do not register to vote and an election is called.
Voting rights were fought for. We must all honor the sacrifice of the generations before us who struggled to ensure that there would be a fair electoral process. It would be an insult to that struggle if Bahamians do not even care enough to register.
For those who do not see a candidate, party or leader they can support yet, register and keep watching and evaluating. The hard campaign has not yet begun. During this process there will be more to evaluate.
The Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and the Free National Movement (FNM) will have to prove that they can inspire again, as many have become disenchanted with their rule. The Democratic National Alliance (DNA) will have to prove it is ready to govern and that it is not merely a tool of its leader’s ego.
We are the judge and jury. If we force them – the candidates, the leaders and the parties – they will do better. A key component of this power is voting. And to vote, you must register.
Jul 18, 2011
thenassauguardian editorial
thenassauguardian editorial
Nassau, Bahamas
More than 100,000 Bahamians have already registered to vote. The Parliamentary Registration Department hopes to register 160,000 to 170,000 people to vote for the next general election. Considering that an election is not imminent – we likely have several months to go – we will likely reach the target set or come very close to it. Bahamians should know that they can register up until an election is called.
Whether or not a person decides to vote, we all should register. Many are unhappy with the two main political parties, and a good chunk of that group may ultimately decide not to vote. That is their democratic right. However, it would be wise nonetheless to still register.
By registering you give yourself a choice. At the last minute, a few days before the election, something may happen to make you want to vote for a candidate, or party or to vote against a candidate or party. You cannot make this decision if you do not register to vote and an election is called.
Voting rights were fought for. We must all honor the sacrifice of the generations before us who struggled to ensure that there would be a fair electoral process. It would be an insult to that struggle if Bahamians do not even care enough to register.
For those who do not see a candidate, party or leader they can support yet, register and keep watching and evaluating. The hard campaign has not yet begun. During this process there will be more to evaluate.
The Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and the Free National Movement (FNM) will have to prove that they can inspire again, as many have become disenchanted with their rule. The Democratic National Alliance (DNA) will have to prove it is ready to govern and that it is not merely a tool of its leader’s ego.
We are the judge and jury. If we force them – the candidates, the leaders and the parties – they will do better. A key component of this power is voting. And to vote, you must register.
Jul 18, 2011
thenassauguardian editorial
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