Grading Golding

He promised, among other things, to construct a social and economic ladder to enable the poor and ignored to "climb their way out of poverty".

"The task before me is enormous. But the Lord is the strength of my life. Of nothing shall I be afraid," Golding said then.

The first draft of history is being written and time will tell whether Golding has been a chief servant or a big talker who left the job of prime minister pregnant with undelivered ideas for a better Jamaica. He cannot be judged in the same way we judged his predecessors. Golding had promised to raise the bar of governance and warned that "we cannot afford to excuse failure, to celebrate mediocrity". Sadly, there are too many instances when Golding went under that bar, and those infringements are enough to justify his early departure from the Office of the Prime Minister.

The Gavel, in this piece, will examine those promises made by Golding after he took the oath of office and determine the extent to which he has delivered on them.

At his inauguration, Golding promised that his Government would be steadfast in the protection of the rights of all Jamaicans.

During the height of the extradition battle with the United States over confessed gangster Christopher 'Dudus' Coke, Golding told the House of Representatives that the request for Coke had breached his constitutional rights and that the Government of Jamaica was not prepared to send him to the US unless the extradition request contained valid evidence.

'If I have to pay a political price for it, I'm going to hold a position that constitutional rights do not begin at Liguanea. That's not where they start," Golding had said.

Coke, who was subsequently extradited to the US, has pleaded guilty to racketeering charges. The US had intended to try him on drug and gunrunning charges. We have since seen evidence to suggest that Golding's fight for Coke was not necessarily about protecting his constitutional rights, but rather to keep a key member of his political flock in Tivoli Gardens, west Kingston.

Notably, since the extradition of Coke, and the introduction of laws which suppress the rights of the underclass Jamaican men, crime figures have trended down to the lowest in many years. This achievement squares well with Golding's promise to achieve a reduction in crime, so that Jamaicans can feel safe and secure. But as to whether Golding should be credited with the reduction in crime will be a topic of major debate for years to come.

The Gavel is of the view that many of the anti-crime measures employed by the Government, such as the anti-crime bills and the proposed anti-gang legislation will not yield sustainable results.

Nonetheless, no measurement of Golding's defence of rights can be made without taking into account the passage of the Charter of Rights, as well as the establishment of the Independent Commission of Investigations.

In terms of other promises Golding made, it is still too early to determine whether he, in his four years as prime minister, has made any substantial strides in the creation of a more educated, productive workforce.

But as it relates to attracting investments that create real jobs, generate prosperity and ensure that that prosperity is shared among the people, we can see little evidence of this having happened under Golding's stewardship. Certainly, the global recession would have impacted on the delivery of this promise.

Nonetheless, there is the question of management of the economy during those difficult periods. In grading Golding, one will have to decide whether macroeconomic stability achieved through low interest rates, low inflation and a strong positive net international reserve, can be taken as a substitute to low investment, increasing poverty and the loss of an estimated 100,000 jobs.

Another promise made by Golding at his inauguration is transparency and accountability in government and the elimination of corruption. The enactment of the whistle-blower legislation, as well as a review of the procurement guidelines are positive steps in this direction.

The prime minister has also brought to Parliament a bill to establish a special prosecutor, which would be critical in going after public officials who steal from the public purse. That bill has not been passed as parliamentarians have been diligent in finding the faults in it and have sent it back to be worked on.

We give the prime minister credit for bringing the bill to Parliament. It is such a pity he has not attempted to introduce legislation that would require subcontractors who benefit from government contracts to meet fit and proper criteria and be subject to the probing eye of the Office of the Contractor General.

In terms of creating a strong Parliament and more effective political representation, we have no doubt that the move to have opposition members chair committees of the House has been a positive one. But beyond that, Parliament has been a mess. It operates as a rubber stamp for executive decisions, the members are hardly involved in robust debates, and the business of the House seems to be confined to government business.

In the final analysis, it is clear that Golding did well in some areas as prime minister. But his error of judgment in sanctioning the Coke affair, coupled with his repeated attempts to obfuscate the truth in that matter, made his position as prime minister untenable.

Then, add to that the fact that he showed disrespect for the Constitution in the dual-citizenship violations. The prime minister, who had promised to protect the Constitution of Jamaica, said had he done the right thing - which is to ask those members of parliament who are in breach to resign, renounce their foreign allegiance and face the people in a by-election, it would have caused his Government to topple.

Golding, in his own reflection, will have to determine whether he did all he could as prime minister. The Gavel believes he did not do all he should. His successor must now learn from his mistakes and build on his achievements. This person will have to restore hope, not only in the political system, but also to give all Jamaicans reasons to believe Jamaica can finally become a nation where not everyone has to be rich, but no one has to be poor.

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