THERE MAY indeed have been some fundamental disagreements over policy direction or the lack thereof within the Jamaica Labour Party, that would have forced Verna Parchment and Abe Dabdoub to resign as that party's representative in their respective constituencies in St. Ann North West and St. Catherine North East.
It does appear, however, that the biggest issue confronting them was the quality of representation given to their constituencies and a groundswell demanding that they be replaced.
Political representation has always been a demanding job requiring great commitment on the part of the Member of Parliament (MP), financial resources exceeding what they may obtain from state coffers and a cadre of workers to keep them informed and in touch with the many interests they are expected to address.
Some of the issues for which MPs have assumed responsibility over the years should not rest on their shoulders.
But in our culture of political patronage it has become par for the course to pay school fees and contribute to the burial of the dead. Indigents, widows and orphans clearly need help, but the expectation of handouts has become all too pervasive. Where an MP is unable adequately to address these and other pressing needs, the pressure will undoubtedly mount for them to be replaced.
Ms. Parchment entered representational politics as a reluctant late replacement just before the last general election and defeated the veteran Arnold Bertram from the People's National Party with whom a majority of the voters had clearly grown tired.
But, as Ms. Parchment came to realise, there is more to representation than winning an election. Perhaps the demands of the St. Ann North West constituency proved overwhelming for her but for the people who live there and who have been complaining for an extended period about bad roads and poor water supply, her interventions on their behalf were inadequate. Her experience should serve as a lesson to many of the neophytes who sometimes get giddy with the early flush of success at the polls not fully appreciating that there is a long road ahead of them.
The pressure put on the country's infrastructure by heavy rains last year and the tight budgetary constraints within which the Government is working would have exacerbated the frustrations of constituents.
These are problems that cut across the political divide and the agitation for them to be addressed is not peculiar to any one party. The political parties should be mindful to have in place support systems for their MPs not only to ensure victory at the polls but to see how best to empower people to address their community needs.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
