Stale testosterone stew

Glenda Simms, Contributor

On August 22, writer Erica Virtue alerted readers to the fact that the old guard (men and women) in both the People's National Party and the Jamaica Labour Party are resisting forced retirement.

As one digests the printed words and the subtexts of the underground struggle between the old guard and the young aspirants of power over the people, one is struck by the facescape of the spokespersons who seem to be anticipating and directing the 'palace coup'.

I was both intrigued and challenged to get a full understanding of the game plan of the young contenders who are trying to convince the populace that they are indeed the hope for the future, the last bastion of decency and the best of the well-honed intellectuals capable of pulling the Jamaican society out of the morass of hopelessness, poverty, corruption in high and low places, economic stagnation and criminality.

I scanned the real and subliminal profile of the four men who were the featured spokespersons for Virtue's story.

Gallery of faces

Framing the gallery of the faces was the smiling portrait off Delano Seiveright, a young man whom I truly admire and expect the best from. He remarked that "it is high time that many of the older politicians seriously consider throwing in the towel".

Next to Mr Seiveright was Richard Crawford, who is sometimes quite balanced in his roles as talk-show host and political analyst. He pointed out that "it is the hardest thing to get the old guard to understand the dynamics of the new politics in international relationships, technology, investment, and the development of human resources".

Simply put, Mr Crawford is implying that these old fogies need transplants of their 'termite-infested' brains. According to his assessment, they have no intelligence to envision or understand a changing world. Mr Crawford's research findings on this phenomenon and the related database should be made public as soon as possible.

As I stared at Mr Crawford's photograph I was challenged to decide whether he is an old guard or a young one. He is probably not yet qualified for the 'departure lounge' but I can safely guess that he is in the' waiting room' and his brain is intact and firing.

Lined up beside Mr Crawford is the charming and ever-smiling Fenton Ferguson. He, too, might be of the 'waiting room' vintage. He comes across as being quite wise and reasoned in his observation that "it is not just about age, it is about good governance". His brain is certainly intact.

The final bookend of this gallery of eminent citizens is the youthful face of Damion Crawford. Framed by long healthy locks his face expresses seriousness of purpose and strong convictions. He argues that getting rid of the old guard in the political parties is "part of good governance, it is absolutely necessary".

Having placed the older Mr Crawford and Mr Ferguson in the 'waiting room', I now wish to pose a few challenges to the two young men who are featured as the bipartisans for the movement to either encourage the old guards to jump on the tarmac or have them pushed to hurry their departure. I wonder if either Mr Seiveright or the younger Mr Crawford is cognisant of the fact that the young brigade in both the orange and the green corridors of politics are predominantly male. Against this reality, can these young men convince any sane, sensible and empowered woman (young, old or in-between) that they will be able to conceptualise a world that is not steeped in a testosterone stew of mismanagement, corruption and sleaze?

How different will they be from the old guard that they are planning to jettison? In Dickie Crawford's world view, will they be able to understand their legal, moral and ethical commitment to the international connections that they have ratified since 1962? Indeed, the old guard ratified conventions and shelved them, and continued on their merry way waving flags and banners of nationhood.

I suppose the young men have familiarised themselves with all the articles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and the Convention on the Rights of Disabled Persons, and all other conventions and human rights treaties that the old men shepherded in New York and Geneva.

At this point, I anticipate that the young men who are heralding a new age of equality, common sense and development would come out marching in a band of both young women and men. Instead of this, we are being forced to listen to another generation of testosterone-driven sons of the patriarch. Yes, we are all fed up with the old fogies with their pot bellies and waning libidos, but a new set that will merely replicate the bad behaviours of the past is not the answer.

Young patriots needed

We need a young band of patriotic men and women who respect the history and contributions of their elders and are prepared to build on the positive examples of commitment to country and respect for the masses of the Jamaican people. We need a generation that will not just pay lip service without honouring the treaties that are designed to bring about gender equality and the empowerment of women, the full human rights of all the children of our land, the eradication of all forms of racism, ageism, discrimination against person with disabilities, the marginalisation of rural folk and the eradication of the homophobia which is at the heart of the spread of the HIV AIDS pandemic.

While I definitely enjoy the company and the camaraderie of younger men of my sons' vintage, because I have grown to know that 'there is no fool like an old fool', I am afraid of a time when my grandchildren will come to the realisation that young fools grow up to be the same old fools that their grandmother despised.

There is a real need for Mr Seiveright, Mr Crawford and their fan clubs to bring forward to the country a full programme of real change that will ensure that the old guards' dysfunctional mindset and behaviuors are not replicated in the future period. Having said that, it is important that these young men be reminded that the traditional roots from which the majority of the Jamaican people originated have clear and precise methodologies of recognising the importance of the knowledge and capacities of their elders.

In such societies, older folks are not targeted for extinction. They are allowed to guide the young and to inspire another generation to excellence. Such historical elders are the main ingredients of history - Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Norman Manley, Marcus Garvey, Alexander Bustamante, Fidel Castro, Nanny of the Maroons, and a host of women and men who have inspired us despite their human limitations.

The term 'good governance' is more than a buzz word. Such governance assumes that inclusivity must be the hallmark of development. The brave new world must see the inclusion in governing structures of equal numbers of young women and men, persons with disabilities, poor people, rural folk, faith-based organisations, elders and civil society groupings.

If this is not the world view of the new aspiring powerbrokers, the reality of the future will be old wheels and new wheels spinning in the same testosterone-loaded mud.

Dr Glenda Simms is a consultant on gender issues. Feedback may be sent to columns@gleanerjm.com.

Delano Seiveright

Richard Crawford

Fenton Ferguson

Damion Crawford