From left are Davies, Phillips, Simpson Miller, Pickersgill and Blythe.Omar Anderson
, Gleaner Writer
POLITICAL commentators are insisting that the next Jamaican prime minister should be more assertive, while being able to command the respect of voters from the major political parties and more so from the uncommitted. Additionally, analysts have pointed to the ideal person being particularly sensitive to the cause of the have-nots, as well as being able to mobilise the country around a shared vision.
Brian Meeks, professor of Social and Political Change in the Department of Government at the University of the West Indies (UWI), yesterday commended Prime Minister P.J. Patterson for his non-combative political approach to reduce partisan differences in Jamaica.
He added that Mr. Patterson's compromising character has also helped to reduce clashes among political opponents. However, Professor Meeks noted that this trait often lent itself to "last-minute interventions" on the part of Mr. Patterson.
"Jamaica needs a leader who can be more forthright and lead from the front," the professor said. "We need to find in an ideal leader a way to retain that compromising quality while at the same time find a way to lead more decisively from the front."
Professor Meeks told The Sunday Gleaner that the next local prime minister must also have a solid grasp of technical and global issues associated with globalisation.
Just last week, PNP Chairman Bobby Pickersgill, announced his interest in leading the party and eventually becoming prime minister. Two weeks ago, Finance Minister Dr. Omar Davies did the same.
PNP vice-presidents Portia Simpson Miller, Dr. Peter Phillips, and Dr. Karl Blythe have also indicated ambitions to lead this country. That brings to five, the number of candidates who've basically thrown their hats in the presidential ring.
Management consultant Dr. Henley Morgan believes the next prime minister's constituency should show clear evidence of orderliness in social relations among constituents. He added that the successful candidate should also show a clear penchant for development.
If you can't see a project in their constituency that is of a developmental nature, that eliminates him or her from consideration totally," he said.
Dr. Morgan said arrogance and the inability to motivate and inspire run counter to the interest of Jamaicans at this time. He however recommended the ability to plan, organise, delegate, and monitor as desired hallmarks of the next Jamaica head of government.
"That's what good managers do, if you don't have these, call it a day," Dr. Morgan said.
Anthony Myers, political analyst and pollster, told The Sunday Gleaner last week that while all five "proteges" have admirable qualities, the successful one from the bunch cannot be known to be divisive.
"Jamaica wants a leader who can unite the Jamaican people around a common cause," he stated. "Among the five aspirants, there has to be one who can galvanise the support of the vast majority of the Jamaican people in nation-building."
Following the 2002 General Election which the PNP won by a reduced margin compared to 1997, Prime Minister Patterson announced he would not lead the PNP into the next general election. Since then, interested PNP candidates have been quietly campaigning for the top post.
But if popularity and perception of duty alone were to be credible indicators, then Mrs. Simpson Miller would be out by a canter to lead her party. Polls over the years have shown her to be the politician most loved by Jamaicans across the political divide.
Nearly three months ago, a Gleaner-commissioned poll conducted by Mr. Myers, placed Mrs. Simpson Miller as the best performing minister. She received a 31.8 per cent rating with Dr. Phillips, her arch-rival for the PNP presidency, receiving a distant 7.8 per cent rating.
But while acknowledging that the next prime minister must also show a real concern for the society's disadvantaged, Danny Roberts, vice-president of the National Workers' Union (NWU), told The Sunday Gleaner that the successful candidate must have a clear understanding of global issues.
