Let's become a republic

Franklin JOHNSTON

Friday, October 28, 2011

I want to see "WELCOME TO THE REPUBLIC OF JAMAICA" at my airports by 2015. Let us put this on the agenda of the next Parliament. It won't make us more independent or more prosperous, but it has collateral benefits. The Queen is a good scapegoat to blame, but a republic is not about her. She is head of the Commonwealth and head of state for only a third of members so we join the majority. Some 75 per cent of Australians voted to change her, yet out of respect they give her a royal train to ride before the Perth conference next week. The Queen doesn't mind, nor do we, so who benefits from a republic? Politicians? Voters?

PJ Patterson said we would be a republic come 2007, and Bruce Golding raised it too when they were prime ministers. What is the attraction? More power for them? For us? Ideology? The arguments are esoteric; our manhood is threatened by the Queen wearing "the pants" in our house; but we know she is a cipher as she can do only what Cabinet tells her. So who benefits?

What is a republic?

Many things: rules-based governance, no king or hereditary sons or daughters - no relative takes over and no MP or PM can leave the seat to his chosen son. The seat is the voters's. A Russian president is powerful but has term limits so he puts a proxy in place, leave for a time to circumvent the law and comes back after. The US president gets two terms - end of story! And back to real life. I like it, a powerful president with checks and balances in the constitution and Parliament. So what should our republic be like? Here:

An elected House of MPs whose job is to represent and develop their constituencies. No more "PM pressure mi, too busy to see constituents!" They are lawmakers not ministers.

An elected Senate: One senator elected by each parish plus seven independent "wise men" from farming, business, the professions. At present, the Senate is "upper" house in name only, as most members are partisans who obey their paymasters in the "lower" house.

An elected president: After 2012 we want no PM imposed on us by a party. We are 50 and can choose. We want a directly elected president to serve a maximum of two terms. We will assess the achievements, plans and character of new people and old ones in a three-month primary. The PNP wanted a president with power and the JLP a ceremonial one. Powerful presidents as Hitler moved uneducated people to oppress others. In my inbox I see comments from people who can read and write every week, but reasoning, the "fourth R", is far from them. A bad president could really create havoc, so let's educate all our people!

A judiciary ring fenced in the constitution with our Supreme Court at the apex is the key to good law, good practice, prompt justice for all and tamper proof courts. Amen!

The Executive: These are doers. Talkers are in the House. The president is CEO of Jamaica Ltd, responsible for results, so he needs a team of top managers and choice to appoint the best - it's his neck. Jamaica is small, people know you or your work. A good manager cannot hide so the president will appoint men and women who have track record in the private and public sectors or from the diaspora. If they are good we see them on the news.

Fixed election date: We need pre-set election dates - MPs, senators and president. This is for us not parties! Let's kill the old view; "what is good for the party is good for the nation".

Voters are the "demos" in our democracy and the roots of freedom. Election dates are for voters not parties. We matter! Some people don't vote. I don't deal with them as they disrespect the elders' struggle. Let us match MPs' résumés against the job; see their voting record on ganja, JPS, hanging, contracts, etc, and judge him on performance. Some say one thing in the constituency and quietly vote for another in the House.

Small constituencies breed garrisons: We spend millions to elect and pay an MP to represent 20,000 plus voters - a travesty! We need 45 MPs with 100k people in constituency for good governance. Larger constituencies have a critical mass of taxpayers, schools, public works, churches, businesses, so a proper constituency development plan is feasible. A small voter base means it's easy to buy 3,000 votes or fewer to win. Large constituencies dilute a garrison. Tivoli would be lost in a large constituency, neutralised after two terms and absorbed in three. As we reject "rum bar" politics and embrace media-driven politics the garrison will disappear or have little effect on elections.

A president is the CEO. Some say former President Reagan was an actor so we do not need a good manager as PM. Bulls! He led a nation that was prosperous for generations and has well-established systems. He just had to steer and pursue enrichment projects. We are ground zero; we are not, were never prosperous and our systems suck. We need good managers to get us airborne. The US finds $1b a week to fight in Iraq and it was not in their budget. We can't find teachers pay and it's in our budget. So none of the first eight PMs were known top managers. Are you happy with the results? So in 2012 you elect one just like the others and expect a different result? We need a republic so we can vote for a president. Our PM is an important icon. Great as Bob and Usain are, it is the PM who shows off our gravitas to the world. Scrutiny of a president also means we do the same for political appointees as chairs of boards, high commissioners who are not civil servants. We need the best. Our PM knows the people who can build our prosperity because they build it in other fields. A republic means he can appoint a Don Wehby as minister to do the job directly, not to mentor an MP. In our first 50 years lawyers, trade unionists, sociologists tried to build our economic independence. The second 50 is for managers, engineers, scientists and innovators to take us to prosperity. When we are full throttle like America, any actor or trade unionist can steer the ship and even think of some nice project - an ice skating rink - to put the icing on the cake.

Joyful

Prime Minister Andrew Holness touched good bases in his speech; his bright young family was a joyful touch; we welcome him! Whether he is "more of the same" or the "special one" we will soon see. It is a hard job, thankless (unless you succeed in building prosperity) but well rewarded as no one runs from it - enjoy! Stay conscious, my friend!

Dr Franklin Johnston is an international project manager with Teape-Johnston Consultants currently on assignment in the UK. franklinjohnstontoo@gmail.com

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COMMENTS (21)

Shorna Watson
10/29/2011

Dr. Johnston don't sit there in the UK and make statement like "Some people don't vote I don't deal with them as they disrespect the elders' struggle." Instead try and encourage people to vote now that we are exploring a new approach to politics and abandoning the old ways. I heard Lloyd Smith telling his comrades not to expect handout,which would bribe votes and the prime minister inviting the opposition leader to walk with him in their constituencies.Join them on this venture and promote peace

10/29/2011

Changing systems of governance without the change of the hearts of men inside these systems will result in the "same 'ol same'ol"...so we are back to "square one". 'Repent, I say, repent of all your sins and turn from your wicked ways'...... Great speeches on the political platforms and at inaugurations of Prime Ministers won't get the job done....We have all witnessed that excellent inauguration speech of 2007, and what is the result? The "Chief Servant" had to pack up and flee the scene>>>???

Maude Cooper
10/28/2011

TMack McKenzie
very funny, seems like you are going crazy and I am right behind you.

thor bergers
10/28/2011

and the poor old governor general has to stay home, instead of spreading his words of wisdom all over the place.

howie J
10/28/2011

Mr. Johnston one of the reasons why people send you emails is because they don’t understand how you arrive at statement like this, “We need 45 MPs with 100k people in constituency for good governance.”
Even without nitpicking, how do you arrive at these figures?
Simple math: 5 zeros added to 45 gives 4,500,000 people. Jamaica has a total population of 2.8 million. Considering 45 constituencies, with almost a million people living in the urban areas of Kingston and St. Andrew, then other constituencies will have less than 50,000 per constituency.
I agree that we need less MPs, but not based on your logic.

Bancroft WILLIAMS
10/28/2011

Dr Johnston, I'm not sure where you got your 75% figure from as the latest Morgan Poll dated October 26, 2011 shows 52% of Australians prefer a constitutional monarchy, and 37% prefer a Republic. Details on the poll is in the link below
http://www.roymorgan.com/news/polls/2011/4709/
I do note you are now writing your articles from the UK. Are you in the UK promoting that they change to a Republic too?
An explanation of your 75% figure would be appreciated. A rounding up error perhaps?

Fitzroy Edinborough
10/28/2011

Enjoyed the frank language in this editorial; no high-faluting words or beating around the bush. "We are 50, we get to choose".

howie J
10/28/2011

Changing from the Westminster system to presidential will do nothing good for Jamaica. There is hardly anything about our leaders which gives us pride. We get our pride from the Bob Marleys and Usain Bolts of the society. Academians and politicians have failed the people of Jamaica miserably, therefore, it doesn’t matter what form of government we have, the results will be the same or maybe worst.
Is it our form of government which is creating the duduses in the society? Is it the form of government which has rendered Jamaica to have unskilled labor force of 70 percent? Why can’t we be humble enough to see that we are our worst enemies? Why can’t we see that if we are not able to manage the little, things will only get worst when we hand more power to our already corrupt leaders?

2kool .
10/28/2011

It's not the system that's corrupt it's the people. And if so these same people will find ways to corrupt any system. The OCG has so many anti corruption proposals that's waiting to be implemented but as he stated in New York on Wednesday, our politicians do not have the political will to weed out corruption. A new system will be more of the same.

Mark Forbes
10/28/2011

Your best column yet! Love the idea of the Senate. We definitely do not need no more than 45 seats. Yet the pols have increased it to 63 now. And we say Ja. is hard to govern? A people that is hard to govern would never have allowed that. Most of our problems stem from pols doing anything they please without suffering any consequences.

Nejeeper KNG
10/28/2011

How do you explain in a democracy someone holds a constituency since 1976 until today? It has to be garrison politics why people would vote for someone for 35 yrs and all they have to show is high crime rate, high poverty rate and high unemployment rate. Garrison politics takes the legitimacy out of our political system. In my opinion garrison representatives are not legitimate or honest people and nothing good can come from such person.

Nejeeper KNG
10/28/2011

@F JOHNSTON “the US finds $1b a week to fight in Iraq and it was not in their budget.” It was not in the US budget so they borrowed it from China, the US now has $1.4 trillion in debt thanks to George W. Bush phantom nuclear program in Iraq. In JA we need patriots who see their job as a business to take JA forward. Representatives who sees their jobs as a way to get ill-gotten gains; hustlers “eat a food” mentality will not take us anywhere.

Andre Robb
10/28/2011

I am entirely with you on the general ethos of your argument. I particularly like your comment that those who don't vote disrespect the elders. I'm 23 and I will be voting for the 2nd time come next election, not because I'm particularly enthralled by the options that exist, but because until the system improves (we become a republic) I have a responsibility to participate in the process.

constable 47
10/28/2011

That is exactly what we need. We do not need to take orders from England, we are independent, so we should act that way, get rid of the burden imposed on us. We need to become a Republic, so there are more opportunities for any Jamaican to aspire to be president of his country. I greatly admire your thinking and i say One love, Jah Bless

Bite Jones
10/28/2011

Seems to me you are confusing a Republic with a Presidential system. A Republic is simply removing the the Queen as Head of State and replacing her with an elected or appointed President chosen by the people. What you seem to be advocating along with becoming a republic is to abolish the current Parliamentary system which is based on West Minister for a Presidential or Semi-Presidential similar to the US or Guyana. Trinidad is a Republic but still uses West Minister form of Government.

TMack McKenzie
10/28/2011

Yea I agree Jamaica should be a REPUBLIC now. We are ready for the Republic of Jamaica sounds so nice to say it ......mmmmmmmm Republic of Jamaica wow Beautiful lets go PM Holness. Republic of Jamaica Love it. Next Move merge the Army with the Police and put new stripe on there pants instead of Red and Blue seam Change to Yellow and Green with Black Pants more later...Republic of Jamaica

Stephen Fox
10/28/2011

The republic is a great idea. It fixes a lot of problems if implemented properly. The reduction in the number of constituencies may not fly. That would be asking the same people who currently rule to give up their power. Remember the current constitution puts all the power for change in Gordon House. Thats why all provious proposals have thus far failed. The only out is a third political party or a revolution.

Jay Brown
10/28/2011

Republic me seh too.

carlos king
10/28/2011

Dear Mr. Johnston. If I were a sincere politician who wanted to make a difference in the lives of Jamaicans, I would study your articles and implement most of what you've written over the years. You're a true patriot. I look forward to reading your articles every Friday. And you're on the ball again, I also believe in electing my constituency representative and prime minister. I believe we should have been a Republic yesterday with the checks and balances you have highlighted.

David Armstrong
10/28/2011

This idea has been kicked around for awhile now without getting any real traction. If you are advocating this idea as a solution to Jamaica's problem then going republic is not the answer - at least not at this time. Going republic would be like telling a child that he is now an adult and must be responsible for his own affairs. A few things that would not make the republic idea work for us are: the leadership deficiency, the corrupt political system, and the poor economic base.

Orville Brown
10/28/2011

Republic yes, presidential system no! There is no special magic in the presidential model to solve our problems and corrupt men can wreck any model. Let us try to choose good men.What the American model creates is three presidential powers often working at cross purposes: president wants to rule, senate wants to rule, house wants to rule. With our limited resources we can't afford that logjam nor the whole heap of elections. Of the 183 democracies the clear majority are like ours. Leave it!

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GCT to go down, white rum prices going up

Let's become a republic