WE believe Ms Betty Ann Blaine, a tireless children’s rights advocate, really has the country’s best interest at heart. Her contribution to national life in the capacity of talk show host, among other exploits, has been nothing short of admirable.

However, her newly formed New Nation Coalition (NNC), the vehicle via which she hopes to transport this society to the Promised Land, must be analysed — young as it is — within the context of her previous exploits in politics.

Readers will remember that Ms Blaine, who also happens to be a historian, served as a vice-president of the now defunct United People’s Party (UPP).

Some hard questions must therefore be asked about Ms Blaine’s credentials as a politician. On what basis, for instance, are we expected to hand over our votes to Ms Blaine and her party? Surely it can’t be on the basis of what was reported in yesterday’s edition of this newspaper? For although we appreciate Ms Blaine’s desire to offer a more acceptable political option, there’s a pie-in-the-sky air about the speech she gave at Wednesday’s launch of the NNC.

Of course, we are happy to classify ourselves as a God-fearing, Christian nation. We yearn for the implementation of more equitable tax reforms as well as the evolution of an efficient justice system among other acceptable social structures. However, we can’t dismiss the cold, hard political realities.

The Church, notwithstanding its claims to Godliness, is comprised of human beings who are not without their flaws; and the definition and interpretation of Christianity have yet to achieve universal consensus. Consequently, Ms Blaine’s plan to ground the NNC in Christianity and Christian principles is not necessarily a guarantee of good governance. Her ideals, while laudable, will need a practical political structure — something which we haven’t seen any indication of so far — on which to thrive. We would love to see a manifesto as well as a more-than-perfunctory introduction of the NNC’s core leadership.

As an aspirant to the apex of the country’s leadership, Ms Blaine and her team would also be advised to clear their closets of any skeletons which may be linked to their pasts if they are really serious. For there is much to be said for the NNC’s stated objectives, almost as much as there is to be said of those stated by the National Democratic Movement (NDM), which has yet to gain traction after more than a decade; the ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and the Opposition People’s National Party (PNP) both of which have repeatedly failed us.

Indeed, if Ms Blaine’s NNC can get its act together, we may just be able to break free of the shackles that have been imposed on us by this and previous administrations.

It is with this in mind that we wish her every success.