Golding's gamble

Ian Boyne, Contributor

The People's National Party's young professional group, the Patriots, hailed it as a victory for civil society, the People's National Party (PNP) and the Jamaican people in general. The PNP Youth Organisation (PNPYO) begged to differ: They saw it as a clever diversionary tactic, a smoke-and-mirrors game. Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) die-hard, John Blake, says it is a complete sell-out.

After months of lobbying from civil society groups, opinion leaders and the PNP, the Commission of Enquiry into the Dudus extradition/Manatt, Phelps and Phillips issue was finally conceded by Prime Minister Bruce Golding. Some surmise that Golding has bowed under extreme duress and as a means of defusing the heat from the Harold Brady action in the courts. Others see it as just another sign of his weakness as a leader; his perennial inability to stand on his own two feet for long.

No wishy-washy

John Blake is incensed. And John Blake is no wishy-washy Labourite. He is a true believer, a Jim 'Kool Aid' Jones-type follower of the Labour Party. "The man and the donkey? The ass being driven. An agent of the PNP ... . Observing Mr Golding, he is seeking adoration from a set of Jamaicans who hate his guts. As far as I can see, he is trying hard to please the PNP; namely those in the mainstream party; those in the media; those in the Church, those in the private sector, etc - all PNP activists. When is Mr Golding going to realise that he is the leader of the JLP, the member of parliament for west Kingston, etc.?"

I don't think Blake is just speaking for himself. There is a faction in the JLP who are fed up with what they see as Golding's pandering to the PNP and to the media (which many of them see as one and the same) and they feel if he continues in this vein, he will be handing the next elections to the opposition. Golding is clearly gambling with this decision to establish the commission.

Cynics, and those who see Golding as Machiavellian, are convinced that Golding's motive for establishing the commission is simply to buy time, to deflect intense pressure; to get a chance to concentrate on the business of the state. He himself has confessed in an interview that he had been finding the morning papers distracting and that he can't actually claim stoic calm in all this storm around him. Cynics believe he is simply seeking a breather; a little political time-out, especially leading up to his annual conference, and facing rising prices and increasing poverty and unemployment in the country.

It is not hard to find people who don't trust Bruce Golding and who are willing to ascribe the worst motives to his actions. Many see him as lacking sincerity, a classic Machiavellian; an old-style politician, much in contradistinction to his protestations otherwise, and to his earlier posturing and branding.

It is felt that Golding has bowed to this call for a commission of enquiry to appease his critics, buy some favour with editorial writers (or at least stave off some of the acrimony coming from them) and to get a chance to forget Dudus and Manatt, Phelps and Phillips for a while.

The PNPYO is not as sanguine as its oldsters in the party. While the Observer could carry a headline, "PNP happy with Manatt probe", in reporting on the announcement, PNPYO president, Damion Crawford, who has shown commendable independence of thought from his elders, said in a release: "We find that the declaration of a commission of enquiry into an issue by the individual who sanctioned and from the content of Mr. Brady's lawyers' (letter) initiated the activity is in no way different from Mr Golding's initial action of asking Mr Samuda to investigate an issue that he had full knowledge of".

Some would say Damion smells the rat and knows that this commission of enquiry could work in Golding's favour as a delaying tactic and time-buying technique.

In what seems a swipe at its own party, the youth organisation said in its release "The members of the People's National Party Youth Organisation are unfortunately not as elated about the announced commission of enquiry as some other organisations." Its sister organisation, Raymond Pryce's Patriots, had said "This is a victory for the people of Jamaica" and the Observer reported Opposition Leader Portia Simpson Miller as saying, "Today's announcement by the prime minister is, therefore, a significant first step on the long road to reposition Jamaica in the eyes of the world as a country where the rule of law is paramount." Good for Golding so far.

Crucial areas

Peter Phillips in Parliament, where Golding made the announcement, asked that the Opposition be involved in two crucial areas: The setting of the terms of reference and the naming of the composition of the commission. Golding stated that while he had no such obligation to the Opposition, he would go along with its suggestions. Hard-core Labourites must be wondering, like John Blake, whether he is mad!

The fact is, depending on what the truth is, this could turn out very badly for Golding and the JLP. If the commission gets going early and there are startling revelations and bombshells dropped, Golding would by no means be spared the terrible headlines in the mornings and those dreadful editorials and acerbic columns. If truly independent and competent commissioners are chosen, and the terms of reference are sufficiently influenced by the Opposition and civil society - it could go awfully wrong for the JLP, depending on what is unearthed.

Golding is taking a gamble. But I reject the view that he is a purely Machiavellian politician. I believe that he is, at heart, a democrat, and I have said that many times. He is deeply committed to a set of political values and to a middle class cosmopolitanism and ethos which makes him responsive to public sentiments and concerns. His response to public demands on him is not just weakness, as his internal critics say, or indecisiveness or cowardice. It is not just classic Machivellianism, as PNP Comrades and commentators say. The man is committed - not flawlessly, for he is still human - but he is committed philosophically and at heart to middle class, bourgeois, democratic ideals.

Growing cynicism

There is a growing cynicism about Bruce Golding, which is as lazy as it is distorting. It is fashionable to attack Golding and even JLP cultists like Blake (his real name?) is turning in on him. Golding is a little more complex for some people's facile thinking. I will be abused for saying anything complimentary about him, of course, and will, no doubt, be slandered for my sin of holding a senior executive position at his information agency. The same position I held, incidentally, under the PNP! (Same darn point, John Blake must be saying at this juncture!)

For the record, and for those who care about facts rather than propaganda - just to get this out of the way - I am no recent convert to Golding's virtues. The record shows that I have written positively about him, even when I was speechwriter for former Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller. (A tribute not just to my own integrity and balance, but to her respect for professional independence and journalistic obligations.)

I strongly supported Golding's return to the JLP in columns in 2002 (contrary to other columnists who charged him with selling out); stoutly defended his bid for leadership of the party in 2004 against a man I deeply admire, Pearnel Charles, and sharply criticised my colleague Cliff Hughes (whom everybody knows I highly regard) for criticising his JLP leadership launch speech.

On the Sunday, when I was in the conference room with Portia Simpson Miller and a group of others finishing her Budget presentation - and reply to Bruce Golding's - appeared my column titled 'You were there, Madam PM!' ( May 7, 2006), giving a highly favourable review of Golding's budget speech I said in that column that Golding had delivered a "well-written, well-delivered and tightly-argued presentation ... .He has taken the fight to 'Sista P' in a rhetorically powerful but tasteful and dignified way ... . Those who say Golding can't relate to the masses do not know what they are talking about".

 I went on to say that Golding's "defence of the poor and defenceless was as admirable as it was poignant, and I applaud his blowing the whistle on the neo-liberal state concerned about cost-recovery at the expense of the poor."

Machiavellianism

I ended by saying, after praising Audley's presentation, too, that, "The Opposition has played a fine, masterly and decisive set". Nobody giving me a pay cheque can ever purchase my intellectual independence and integrity. That's not negotiable.

No one wants to give Golding any credit for setting up this commission. It is seen as pure Machiavellianism. The fact is that there are people in his party who are not in agreement with it and are nervous about it. Not every prime minister would establish such a commission - irrespective of the pressure. I am sure at least one Jamaican prime minister comes to mind! Golding, in December bowed to public pressure when the public revolted against the onerous tax package.

He bowed to public pressure to extradite Dudus. It's a good thing to have a prime minister who responds to public pressure. That's the difference between democrats and dictators. Oh, yes, Machiavellians can behave as pure democrats, too, but there we have to go to motives and in that game, my assessment (guess) is as good as yours, and we can never advance what we call in philosophy any "rationally inescapable arguments".

What some see as weakness in Golding is a sign of his middle-class moorings and political values. He is a committed pluralist, an open-society advocate and consensus-seeker, despite his growing image as someone arrogant.

I have absolutely no doubt that Bruce Golding is the best possible leader of the JLP at this time. My writings (all online, thankfully, and easily accessible) have been consistent on that since 2002. His decision this past week to establish a commission of enquiry, in my view, firmly establishes his legitimacy in that position.

Ian Boyne is a veteran journalist who may be reached at ianboyne1@yahoo.com or columns@gleanerjm.com.