Kelly

As I travelled to work on election day (the local government variety that is), I couldn't help but notice the contrast with its general counterpart.

On September 3, the energy level was high, with persons knocking pans and waving their respective flags while waiting for the polling stations to open. On Wednesday, the streets were quiet by comparison and you didn't even see mice. If you've ever seen one of those horror movies where a group of lost tourists stumble upon a deserted town, that's how it was. The subsequent reports of low voter turnout across the island pretty much confirmed it; there wasn't much ado about the whole deal.

I find the fact that persons are not as interested in the local government elections a little disturbing. The councillors elected are closer to the people 'on the ground' and more often, live and work in the division they represent; a contrast to some members of parliament who reside light years from their constituencies. The councillors often know certain individuals in the communities by name, know their families and, because they live there, know about the bad roads they have to traverse, help pray for the water they need to grow their crops and try to catch the goat thieves.

But I partially blame the councillors for not making themselves more visible to the people. I have no idea who my councillor is, what's his name (at least I was told it's a guy) or where he lives. He could have walked past my desk while I was writing this and I would not have known him.

I'm not a gambling man but I'm willing to bet that this is the case for quite a few persons in communities islandwide. And, when you do see them, they're usually in the media complaining that central government hasn't provided any funds because the division supports the opposition party. And yet, despite the perceived lack of interest leading up to election day, the scum of society successfully found a way to bring violence to the whole thing. Incidents in St. Elizabeth, Kingston and St. Catherine all undermined the process. For those who weren't deterred by that, government officials warned potential voters against the 'foolhardiness' of voting for somebody else.

If that didn't cause you to roll your eyes and say 'here we go again', then you're very patient. Should we really be surprised that people didn't care when the day finally arrived?

The more I think about it, the more I realise I should have run on an independent ticket. With family and friends voting, I might have won! Oh well!