Wendel Abel

THE ELECTION is over and done. It was all about convincing people to vote. The messages targeted our emotions, hearts, brain and guts as the mudslinging and the sand-bagging intensified. This is the essence of campaigning and electioneering, which is much about political psychology.

The political pundits are still chewing at the figures and reviewing the results as they perform the post-mortem and conduct the last rites. The outcome of the election has resulted in victors, the vanquished and the vanished.

The victors

The victors are certainly those who won; a new government is now in place. One of the challenges facing this new team is the issue of trust. Our people have sent a strong message that they are tired of corruption and politicians who are self-serving.

An aunt of mine, Joyce Gordon, commented that the challenge of the incoming administration is 'to pick up the pieces and pick up peace'. We have a fractious, polarised and divided society to heal and reunite.

The real victors are the people of this country. We are astute and are certainly displaying a greater level of political maturity. We took this election seriously; we debated, discussed and challenged the politicians, more than any other time in our history, to put the issues on to the table.

We demanded of them higher standards in the election campaign and in their overall conduct. The new government must subject itself to a greater sense of probity and transparency or their days will soon be numbered.

The vanquished

A new generation of politicians have come to the fore. Those who did not perform are vanquished. Those who perpetrated the old style of politics are no more.

The vanished

( L - R ) Bruce Golding, Portia Simpson-Miller

It is painful and sad, but a lot of the old faces will vanish. Many of them will have to return to their previous lives, roles, occupation and places of abode. The lifestyle which they were previously accustomed to will be no more. No more power, no more status, no more privilege, no more special treatment. They will become ordinary citizens like all of us. This adjustment will be very difficult for many of them.

We sense 'the weeping and wailing and the gnashing of teeth' as the political pall descends upon the vanquished and the vanished.

May we all as Jamaican celebrate our status as the victors. Once again, we have safeguarded and protected our democratic tradition. In not giving the winning party an absolute majority, the people have consolidated their hold on power and have forced our political parties into an era of consultative engagement.

May this new breed of politicians not take us anymore for granted, but instead apply the principles of political psychology to understand and govern us properly. If they fail to do so, they too will be vanished.