By Garwin Davis, Assistant News Editor
Pime Minister P.J. Patterson in the midst of a throng of jubilant supporters on October 16, 2002. - File
TODAY MARKS a year since the Government of the People's National Party was returned to power for a historic fourth term. For Prime Minister P.J. Patterson, it also signals a turn towards what could soon be the end of a political career which has spanned over 30 years.
Mr. Patterson has repeatedly said that he would not be the person leading his party into the next general election, constitutionally due in 2007.
But one year after the shouts of victory have died down, what has the PNP's performance as the party in government been like? What about the promises made... are there things, anything, to indicate that the country is on the right track?
"No doubt... the facts are there to show that we have had phenomenal success," is how Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Senator Delano Franklyn a man who, prior to the election last year, was Special Adviser to the Prime Minister describes the Govern-ment's performance so far. "We have been able to achieve or at least started most of our objectives in addition to maintaining a consensual approach to governance. Asked to list some of the achievements, Mr. Franklyn continued:
"Many were predicting that there was no way we could put together a balanced budget we were able to do that in April. We promised to eventually phase out cost-sharing in schools I believe over a five-year period we are well on our way. And while we are on the subject of education, many will remember that we promised to pay the exam fees for four CXC subjects for students we have done so in addition to paying for an additional subject.
Look at health care the creation of a National Health Insurance Scheme where over 750,000 persons suffering from chronic illnesses are now benefiting. We could talk about Highway 2000 and the opening of the toll road; we could look at the provision for the prevention of corruption where 20,000 public sector workers are being asked to declare their assets; we promised an increase of the minimum wage and we have delivered."
FAILURES OR CHALLENGES
Pressed on whether there weren't any failures or challenges...the reason for the party's embarrassing defeat in the Local government election in June, Mr. Franklyn, while conceding that there were "reasons for concern", said they weren't enough to detract from the overall performance of the government. "We have not got on top of the crime and violence situation," he said. "This is troubling, especially in the high number of homicides we see taking place.
Another troubling area is growth and unemployment. Even though we have been able to attract investment, growth is off and the economy is a concern." And the local government polls? "Yes we lost but the election was a lot closer than some people would want to admit," he said.
PNP HAS FAILED
However not everyone shares Mr. Franklyn's optimism.
Derrick Smith, Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Deputy Leader and Spokesman on National Security, is of the view that the PNP has failed miserably in the fight against crime and violence, noting that the murder rate has grown to what he called "uncomfortable levels during the last three years."
"The PNP had promised to make crime a priority... the Prime Minister said as much during his victory speech last year," Mr. Smith said. "Look at what has happened. We are now in a state of crisis and the government clearly doesn't have a clue on how to deal with this problem."
Figures from the Constabulary Communication Network show that in 2000 there were 887 murders, there were 1,139 in 2001 and 1,045 last year. Up to yesterday, there were 698 murders since the start of 2003.
And then there is the question of corruption. Mr. Patterson, following the PNP's victory at the polls, committed himself to leading a Government without a taint of corruption. In taking his oath of allegiance to the people and Constitution of Jamaica, he said "The team I chose (his new Cabinet) will be expected to serve diligently and with humility... there must be no taint of corruption."
For his part, he pledged to work "steadfastly, without arrogance, with integrity, decency and fairness to do the people's work." "We have heard the voice of the people and will unrelentingly seek to promote unity, peace and harmony in all sectors of our society," Mr. Patterson stressed.
OMAR DAVIES' AFFAIR
Critics, however, have argued that the Prime Minister, by his seeming penchant for supporting members of his Cabinet even in the face of damning evidence- may have violated the very code of conduct he had spelled out for his ministers. They point to the Dr. Omar Davies affair earlier in the year as one of the many gaffes to define the first year of the administration's fourth term in office.
Mr. Patterson, amid calls for Dr. Davies' resignation, came out in full support of the Finance Minister, saying there were no grounds to warrant his dismissal. Dr. Davies had confessed at PNP constituency meeting that he maintained spending on certain government projects in an effort to give the governing People's National Party an advantage in last year's general election, even though knowing that some of the decisions were financially unsound.
DISAPPOINTMENT
"That's Mr. Patterson's eternal flaw," notes Winsome Brown, a teacher from St. Ann. "What is ironic is that most of the problems he finds himself in is not of his own doing... his colleagues in government have disappointed him badly. Yet what does he do? Instead of rebuking them... he turns around and support them... this will and has been his downfall. The hallmark of a great leader is not to be loyal to a fault."
For columnist Ian Boyne, the PNP might have been a victim of its own electoral successes and needed to spend the remainder of its term doing the things the country elected the party to do. He wrote: "A party which has been elected for the fourth consecutive term in an economy which is not showing spectacular economic growth and a society rocked by increasing and seemingly intractable levels of violence and social and moral decay is not a party with time on its side. The biggest issue facing the PNP is how to excite the imagination and passion of the Jamaican people; how to win the credibility of large numbers of people who have become cynical, disaffected and politically apathetic; and how to rebuild its internal party structures and grassroots organisational base."
