Grange
Glenda Anderson
, Staff Reporter
WARMONGER? "THAT'S what they say?" she ducks and stifles a giggle at the ungracious moniker with which some have dubbed her for her recent brushes with colleagues on both sides of Gordon House.
She cringes slightly then erupts into laughter.
But these days the ever-polished Olivia Atavia 'Babsy' Grange, three years shy of her 60th birthday, and Member of Parliament for the intractable, fireball communities of Central St. Catherine is even more intent on speaking her mind, forcefully, despite the name-calling.
Perched on the edge of a shallow chair in one of the conference rooms at Gordon House, she pores over documents in between answering questions and taking calls. Hair pulled back in her trade mark fashion bun, her soft tweed grey jacket with black piping, over classic black undershirt and long flowing black skirt, complete the image of the 'genteel' dominatrix. Her eyes are soft, almost deer-like. Today, they are tired. It's after three o'clock in the afternoon and she hasn't yet had lunch. The session is far from over.
ATTITUDE
"Sometimes you have to make a decision, you get to a point where you have to. I've always had this attitude I look the devil straight in the eye and deal with it and there are times when I will overlook a situation. I'm an extremely tolerant person. However, I am not a pushover. It's just a point at which I will take a stand. Over the years I've been like that and you know in the Bible they say there's a season for everything... there's the season for it now," she said.
Recently, a meeting of the Jamaica Labour Party's Central Executive Council fast-forwarded into meltdown after she lashed out in near colourful language at individuals who had harassed her throughout a presentation.
Last February she volunteered to meet with criminal elements in St. Catherine head on, to broker a truce.
SILENCED
In Parliament at recent sittings of the House she refused to be silenced, repeatedly defying calls to let the issue of prison beatings of her constituents rest.
But while some have seen this as a evidence of something afoot with the enigmatic Grange, she says it's simply the season in her life for no compromises.
"There was a meeting of the Central Executive (Sunday, March 21) and there were a number of things which took place in which I was concerned," she begins to explain slowly. "I made an appeal to the various groupings in an effort to reduce hostilities which may have existed on my part... to put it behind, and I extended the olive branch ...and I made a plea for unity.
"During that period I was heckled and provoked but I remained calm and, when I left the podium, I was making my exit and the heckling and strong remarks continued and at that point I decided that I would take a stand and I took that stand on my behalf and the behalf of all those who I felt were disrespected that day.
"Now as far as disciplinary action being contemplated, I have not been approached and if that is brought to my attention then I also will be filing disciplinary actions or complaints against several individuals."
Born on Bond Street, West Kingston, to working class parents, her mother Raphaelita Walker, a nurse, and father Joseph, a machinist, as the first of 12 children Babsy Grange is no stranger to conflicts and confrontations.
She says her early days have taught her to be a survivor, with a measure of warmth and militancy.
"I grew up with my grandmother, and one of the things she used to say, is 'manage with what you have, make your world as comfortable as possible with what you have'. (So) My whole attitude to life is positive. It's the way I live. I don't abuse my body, mental or emotional state. I feel good about myself and people. That radiates and makes you look good."
She shares a daughter with former Government minister Roy McNeil, and is now a grandmother of three, but is still secretive about her personal life.
"I'm a very private person, I like to keep my relationships very, very private," she says softly. She concedes only that she has been engaged 'a couple of times'. "If I were still in Canada I would have been at home with a husband and family. I chose Jamaica and politics."
DETAINED
During the State of Emergency in the early 1970s, Grange was detained for seven months at Up Park Camp in Kingston.
"I was never charged and so not able to prepare a case, so I could have been held indefinitely."
Her release (January 1976) was on condition that she leave the island and not return during the period of the State of the Emergency.
Lately she has no patience with persons who show disregard for the efforts and sacrifices of others, especially in the political sphere.
On rumours of a radical, revolutionary wing in the Jamaica Labour Party, Grange said, "There's no reformist and there's no traditionalist (wing).
"I would refer to them as a new slate of officers. They're not all young although the impression that is given is that they're all young persons, and they're not all new. It's just a new slate of officers which include some young persons. I think that they have a lot of energy.
"They're lacking in some protocol. In their anxiety, I guess, to do everything necessary with the objective for the Labour Party to become the Government they have breached ... caused some breach in some areas, some disrespect in some and that has become a concern," she says.
Recently, news of infighting among the JLP members as well as verbal tussles among outsiders had fuelled rumours of bitter discontent and distrust in the group.
"You've asked me about my relationship with my colleagues. I had an excellent relationship with the previous deputy leaders. Presently, the relationship is fairly good and I would not single out any one deputy leader. You've asked about my relationship to Mr. Golding, I respect him, I have known him a long time and I have worked with him. He left the Labour Party and now he's back ... there are no hard feelings."
The suggestion that she would not work alongside any other party leader except Mr. Seaga was also put to rest.
"I have a commitment to my constituents, and although one could see me as Mr. Seaga's protégé and I've been associated with Mr. Seaga for a long time, I do have other commitments, and I recognise what my responsibilities are. I would be willing to work with anyone who succeeds Mr. Seaga if Mr. Seaga is not pushed out and he leaves the office in a dignified way. If this does not happen I will take a stand and the majority will take a stand.
APOLOGY
"I will not apologise for being loyal to Mr. Seaga, and I will not deny him or ever disrespect him. He has flaws but who doesn't? If I have concerns, I discuss it with him but I will never go public and we've had our strong arguments but we worked them out and if he does something wrong I will tell him but I'm not going to desert him.
"When Mr. Seaga came into West Kingston I was a young girl still in primary school, and along with me and several others Desmond McKenzie, Daphne Hurge, a number of other persons, young people, he guided us and encouraged us, and today we have to say thanks to him and so people should not question our loyalty. He taught us to be loyal and he's as loyal to us. It doesn't mean that he entertains wrongdoing if we should do something wrong he'd deal with us in a strong way."
In between voting and debating sessions in the House, Ms. Grange reflected on the new and emerging JLP image.
"The JLP is more democratic, the constitution has been revised and it's a process that is ongoing. We now have an operations manual which has also established rules and regulations with which we have to work... In addition, in the days when I was quite young there was a certain aura which existed around our leaders and our leadership and that aura generated a certain amount of respect. (There was ) respect for our elders, seniors in relation to the position they occupied and we really had to pay our dues and earn our positions."
"I also feel that more emphasis was put on ensuring that a woman was always put in the leadership line-up and so an effort was always made to position a woman and to support a woman, not only because she is a woman but because she is capable.
"In addition, particularly under Mr. Seaga's leadership because he was very conscious about the leadership blend and the leadership mix both in terms of social background, gender, and racial mix. He always felt that the leadership of the party should be representative of the mix of the people we represent. (Now) For the first time I detect and feel a real presence of class, colour and money difference creeping in a subtle way. It seems like the influence of those things that we have worked to keep away... having those things influence persons getting to important positions in the party and an insensitivity to the role of women in the party, that is rearing its head, and that's something I will also take a stand against. Everyone, regardless of colour, class and money should have equal opportunity to rise to the position of leader. As it is now I have those concerns."
On the recent troublesome issue of sponsors and the impact of their contribution to campaigns, Ms. Grange said: "I think funds do influence the party. Those who contributed to the campaign for the various positions would have had an influence on the results because they provided the funds that were used to gain an edge. I don't think there's a rift between outside sponsors and party leadership... I think there are some private sector people who feel that Mr. Seaga should go and some do withold funds to the party because they have that concern and there are others who make funds available, who support that argument or that feeling. I would not want to say anything disparaging about sponsors because those are issues on which we are working."
But while she says she has not harboured feelings of higher party office, Ms. Grange admits that a major stumbling block now exists for women in the party who aspire to leadership positions.
SORE POINT
"At this time for me, I think that within the party a woman who is capable can attain any position except for one drawback funding. It affected me and that's a sore point. I think it is more difficult for women to get funding in a campaign than it is for the men because the men tend to support each other, and we do not have a large pool of women with a lot of resources at their disposal.
"In terms of leadership of the Labour Party I have never got into that debate. All the things I have done and I've achieved I've never really aspired or craved for those things. I work hard, I produce and I find that I am elevated each time. I like working with people. I like being on the ground. I'm particularly interested in pulling up people at the grassroots level. I want to see that they get all the opportunities we can create for them to have a better life."
In fact, the future should see an energised Babsy Grange, focused on making even more demands on herself and career.
"I'll be looking to organise myself as an individual, looking at doing some things professionally, and taking on a couple of public relations assignments." Also in the offing are new projects to manage several young artistes. On the wider scale, political outreach will see greater efforts at meeting goals.
"I will continue to work in my constituency. I'm now working on a plan (20/20 Vision) that's projected through to the year 2020 so that anyone who succeeds me will have a blueprint. I want to make my constituency a model constituency, it's gonna be difficult to depend on Government resources to do that so I'm exploring other avenues in which I can achieve that over a period of time. I know the JLP will become Government, I know we will solve the internal problems which we have, and when the JLP becomes Government if Mr. Seaga is the leader, or if he is not the leader and someone else is I know I will have a place of importance in that Government."
