Golding's selfless game-changers

The afternoon of Sunday, September 25, marked a sombre and reflective moment for the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and many Jamaicans. Bruce Golding, prime minister and party leader, announced at the Central Executive meeting that he would not be seeking re-election at the party's annual general conference in November and would step down as prime minister as soon as a new leader has been elected.

He pointed out that he had planned to lead the party into a second term of government and demit office within two years thereafter. He stated: "The challenges of the last four years have taken their toll, and it is appropriate now to make way for new leadership to continue the programmes of economic recovery and transformation while mobilising the party for victory in the next general election." The revelation came less than two weeks after the passing of his mother, Mrs Enid Golding.

What is most impressive about Bruce Golding is his selflessness, sharp intellect, vast grasp of issues and an awe-inspiring zeal for the structured overhaul of Jamaica's economic, political and social landscape. He is a rare and exceptional human being who inspired throngs of young, patriotic Jamaicans, including myself, who are committed to playing our part in transforming a much-beaten country for the better.

country a wreck

He inherited a country in September 2007 plagued with a myriad of chronic economic and social dilemmas and has had to handle, in his four years at the helm a series of crises, including international oil, food and economic crises. He also had to tackle dual-citizenship challenges, the Dudus extradition saga, and a near economic collapse, in addition to a broad range of other serious and weighty economic, political and social issues. There were probably as many problems internally as there are externally. He deserves commendation to have survived so long with the flurry of unprecedented challenges to date.

Despite the crush of overwhelming troubles that far outweigh any other time in Jamaica's post-Independence history, Golding led the most fundamental economic and social reforms that have resulted in the stabilisation of the Jamaican economy, strong anti-corruption initiatives, strengthened social safety net initiatives, major developments in tourism, agriculture and transport, fundamental reforms in health and education, widespread governance reforms and improved governmental management across the board.

No other leader has achieved as much as Mr Golding has within the taxing circumstances. He actually made the 2007 JLP manifesto worthwhile! And, despite the daily clamour from the People's National Party (PNP), all well-thinking Jamaicans know that power-hungry and populist rhetoric, devoid of any reasonable alternatives, will only reverse all the gains made.

EXTRADITION SAGA

The entire Dudus affair, expectedly, brought disillusionment and outright disgust across the society. There is no need now to dwell on the issues again, after all, the country was earlier this year subjected to the most transparent and publicised enquiry in our history. The resulting 58-page report, in part, pointed out that the prime minister's handling of the matter was 'inappropriate'.

We should understand, though, that the Government of Jamaica maintained, from the beginning, that the methods used in pursuing the case against Coke constituted a breach of Jamaican laws and the Constitution and made strenuous efforts to get the American authorities to do the right thing, which ultimately resulted in the delay in the signing of the extradition request.

The Government's options were limited to either authorising or refusing the extradition request for Christopher Coke. If the request was refused, the matter would have been undoubtedly exaggerated and spelled doom and gloom. Instead, the Government opted to work with the United States to perfect the process.

ATONEMENT WELL ON TRACK

Notably, too, the prime minister not only expressed profound regret, forgiveness and apologised via national broadcast to the people of Jamaica, but had set out an atonement package which incorporated political and constitutional reforms that either needed to be fast-tracked or made reality. These included:

Appointment of a special prosecutor to fight corruption.

Whistle-blower legislation to aid in fighting crime and corruption

Independent Commission to investigate abuses by the security forces.

Fiscal-responsibility legislation to, among other things, exert control over our fiscal deficit and accumulation of debt.

Reform of the libel laws to enable greater transparency and accountability in government.

Measures to reverse the institutionalisation of political tribalism and garrisons, as manifested in many constituencies across political lines.

Provisions for the impeachment of public officials.

Term limits for the office of prime minister.

Vesting constitutional authority in the contractor general and Electoral Commission.

Laws to regulate political party financing.

Enacting into law certain provisions of the Political Code of Conduct with appropriate oversight and penalties for violations.

Criminal sanctions for breaches of the award of contracts.

Parliamentary oversight in the appointment of certain statutory positions.

Parliamentary approval for the anti-crime bills, the DNA Evidence Act and new criminal gang legislation.

Most of these promises have come to reality or are well advanced in coming to fruition.

TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP

Importantly, no Jamaican should react glibly to Mr Golding's announcement. In fact, this serves as a time for deep and thoughtful introspection, and a commitment as a people to see through to full fruition all of Golding's fundamental and frequently unpopular/bitter pill yet vastly beneficial reforms.

Further yet, it is incumbent that the JLP's next leader continue Golding's reforms and steer Jamaica from its obstinate propensity to not change for the better. That leader must have the ability to inspire people, offer steady-handed leadership, boast a track record of performance and command the respect of the broad spectrum of Jamaican society and our international partners.
That leader should, at the same time, work alongside young aspiring politicians, respected and experienced elders and seek to bring about a paradigm shift in politics and leadership in Jamaica. Notably, too, that leader must confront monumental challenges and see to it that he is not tied by virulent special interests with sometimes conflicting and destructive agendas.

That leader, then, should strive to be a towering transformational figure. Last year, in an In Focus column assessing transformational leadership, I pointed out that it, "... involves a charismatic individual who is able to inspire others to perform beyond his usual self. Academic literature on leadership points to a range of traits and skills that are linked to successful leaders worldwide. Included in these traits are being adaptable to situations, alert to one's social environment, ambitious and achievement-oriented, assertive, cooperative, decisive, dependable, dominant (influence others), energetic, persistent, self-confident, tolerant of stress, and willing to assume responsibility. As it relates to skills, this includes being clever (intelligent), conceptually skilled, creative, diplomatic, fluent in speech, persuasive, socially skilled, knowledgeable about group task and well-organised."

Golding's stoic and selfless action represents a game-changer for not only the JLP and the PNP, but Jamaica on a whole. In his very sober, insightful and serious presentation to the party's Central Executive, one gleaned that he does not want us to waste this very rare opportunity. Listen to him this evening as he speaks to the nation.

Delano Seiveright is president of Generation 2000 (G2K), the young-professional affiliate of the JLP.