UNC lacks credibility

How can this be, when crime is at the forefront of everybody’s mind? The short answer is that the UNC so mishandled its affairs in office that the party’s leading figures are seen as irremediably tainted.

UNC supporters may argue that this is solely the result of PNM machinations and that no UNC figure has been found guilty of any wrong-doing. In politics, however, it is not the court of law which matters, but the court of public opinion. Indeed, it is highly significant that other NACTA polls show that even Indo-Trinidadians have lost faith in UNC leader Basdeo Panday.

If the UNC is to regain political credibility of any sort, it must identify the core reasons why the populace no longer sees it as a credible alternative government. After all, judged purely by its legislative agenda and social and economic indicators, the UNC administration did not perform badly during its term-and-a-half in office.

Also, it is unlikely that the perception of corruption alone defeated the party. Despite the fact that this issue arouses the second highest degree of passion amongst the electorate (after, of course, race issues), other polls have shown that corruption does not, of itself, sway voters. But the UNC while in office also made citizens uneasy that their fundamental rights would be curtailed, while its leadership often flouted established procedures and traditions. It can be argued that the PNM is no different, but that party, simply because of longevity, has an authority which the UNC had yet to earn.

That kind of legitimacy, however, does not necessarily mean that the PNM uses its authority properly. And, now halfway through its term of office, the ruling party is hard put to find non-hardcore supporters who approve of how they are handling the affairs of the country. Indeed, only 17 percent of those surveyed by NACTA gave a thumbs-up to the PNM on the issue of crime.

There may be many reasons why the present administration has been unable to get a handle on criminal activity, particularly murders and kidnappings. It may even be that any other regime would also be equally hapless. What the NACTA poll implies, however, is that the PNM really has no motive to improve its performance. This country does not have a political system with sufficient checks and balances to the party in power. Indeed, the system does not even have enough checks and balances to the person who sits in the Prime Minister’s office. It is this deficiency which lies at the heart of the calls for constitutional reform.

Since we are stuck with the present system for some time, however, a crucial check is a credible Opposition. Our politicians are of such stuff that their main motive to perform is not commitment to country, or to principle, or even to competence. Their main motive is fear of loss of office. But that spur can only apply if the party in Opposition is perceived as a viable alternative to the party in Government.

As matters stand now, this is not the case, and the nation suffers for it.