THE EDITOR, Sir:
To be persuasive, we must be believable;
To be believable, we must be credible;
To be credible, we must be truthful.
Edmund R. Murrow
ANYONE SEEKING to lead effectively, especially in public office, must understand that effective leadership requires unquestioned credibility on his/her part.
As a matter of historical fact, Bruce Golding founded the NDM in 1997 on the premise that he could no longer be a part of the sea of evil, wickedness, corruption and criminality, that has engulfed the two traditional parties in their fight for State power (which he reiterated on the Breakfast Club on September 9, 1999). The former NDM president and founder made it clear that the present political structure and culture of the traditional parties coupled with the inherent Constitutional weaknesses in our present form of government would mitigate against him being part of that system.
These strong sentiments caught the attention of a great deal of Jamaicans who believed in Mr. Golding and indeed moved to support the NDM. A few months after its launch, the NDM began experiencing as much as 17 per cent of popular support from the people of Jamaica. Many Jamaicans who would not have normally gotten involved in politics suddenly became interested - primarily due to the fact that they believed in the declaration of a need for a new political order as enunciated by Bruce Golding.
The Gleaner of February 25, 2000 reported that during their Talk 2000 series at which Mr. Golding was their guest, when asked if he would consider rejoining the JLP, he answered with a resounding No! He stated that "The JLP's determination to retain much of the old political order is not something I could ever accept again."
Just imagine what would have happened if Martin Luther King Jr., had abandoned his fight during the civil rights struggle, the disillusionment of African-Americans would almost be irreversible; if Nelson Mandela had given up his fight during those 25 years of imprisonment, the people of South Africa would still be in the pangs of the world's longest, most horrific and sustained act of terrorism; if Marcus Garvey had given up his fight during his incarceration; if Norman Manley or Alexander Bustamante had given up during their struggle for political Independence and workers rights.
No great warrior or leader of note turns back his army or followers, and moreso abandons them in times of crisis!
The current return to the JLP is centred narrowly on the possible short-term gains that may or may not go the JLP in the upcoming elections. What is missing is the confusion that this move is causing amongst some of the constituents of the NDM, the further deepening of the uncommitted divide, and the question of honesty and credibility.
It is terribly naive to think that most of the supporters of the NDM will move over to the JLP or that the JLP's chronic leadership problem will disappear.
Those supporters of the NDM who were never JLP in the first instance and who really subscribed to what Bruce Golding was espousing are the ones I think who will be mortally wounded.
With Bruce Golding turning his back on these people, his real problems have only just begun. How will he reconcile in any credible way with the JLP and its Leader after his utterances at the 3rd Annual Conference of the NDM at which he stated that "The JLP is now seeking to position itself as the guardians of local human rights, when its own record of human rights was heavily tainted in the 1980s." How will he explain this to Delroy Chuck who thinks otherwise.
At the conference as reported in The Gleaner of July 26, 1999, he stated that "The difference between myself and Mr. Seaga, is that I have come to the recognition that some of the things I took part in were wrong." What were these things and what will become of them now?
How does he reconcile with this statement which he made in July 1999. "The NDM remains committed to the need for fundamental political and constitutional changes... rejecting the notion that the country's problems can be solved simply by removing the PNP from office."
What has happened to these fundamental changes that are required?
How does he reconcile with the Jamaican people after making public his association with gunmen, but articulated that he could not go back to those associations, if he did it would be like trampling on the blood of those six NDM supporters that were slain in 1996 (see The Gleaner September 3, 1999).
Consistency, sound ethics and time-tested principles are all critical ingredients of honesty, which cannot be explained away by fanciful words, or by being the darling of the media.
Whether Bruce Golding likes it or not, and whether those who are seeking short-term political expediency realise it or not, this move will cause the little credibility that he now enjoys to evaporate in thin air.
I am etc.,
FITZROY A. GREGORY
kidwani@yahoo.com
PO Box 180
Kingston 5
Via Go-Jamaica
