PRIME Minister Portia Simpson Miller delivered an inspirational, aspirational, sober, comprehensive and memorable inaugural speech last Thursday at King’s House during her swearing-in ceremony, and not even the conspicuous absence of former Prime Minister Bruce Golding deflated the “pomp and circumstance” that attended the occasion.

The prime minister hit all the right chords and easily scored a perfect ‘A’ for content, relevance, eloquence, scope, believability and impact. I love a good speech and she delivered no less. She lifted the words and made them her own, so it’s upward and onward from here, Madam Prime Minister.

And while a speech does not answer all questions or settle all scores about competence or reliability, it can signify grit of character, devotion, dexterity and seriousness of purpose; all of which Mrs Simpson Miller ably displayed throughout her inaugural address. Mrs Simpson Miller exuded enough confidence, competence, credibility and composure to assuage persistent doubts about her suitability for the highest office of the land, argument done.

Those who still cannot bring themselves to accept the reality that she is once again prime minister of Jamaica had better wake up to the reality that she is, in fact, the prime minister. It is full time they quit the annoying hypocrisy because the unwillingness will get them nowhere, except to increase the size of their self-imposed misery.

Mrs Simpson Miller’s exceptional performance during the campaign and since should retire the stubborn naysayers and naturalise their agile affinity to engage in intellectual masturbation about her abilities and social pedigree.

In fact, it was not coincidental that two eminent professors from the accredited Union Institute & University, from which she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Administration, were in attendance at the swearing-in ceremony. Her command and influence, struggles and triumphs remain enigmas to many, but for me, her rise and stature are truly demonstrative of Jamaican exceptionalism.

Love her or hate her, Portia has pizzazz; she is an instinctive egalitarian, an important quality for modern leaders and leadership. And although she would be the first to tell you that she is imperfect, she possesses abundant quotients of seriousness of purpose, determination and dedication — the kind that surfaced during the campaign and have lingered since and which she sought to transmit to Jamaicans. These are sufficient qualities to make Jamaicans feel ready to believe again.

So when she mentioned self-awareness as a deliberate preface to HD Carberry’s It Takes A Mighty Fire only to re-emerge later with the reassuring words about her own journey and that, “After being tested and tempered, I stand before you today, a stronger and better person, who is prepared to be of service to my country and people”, it was her way of saying to us never give up on our dreams and aspirations, to keep believing in our ideas and to work consistently and unrelentingly in pursuit of our highest ideals.

The speech was not only a fulsome acknowledgement of the mandate that the people have reposed in her party and Government, but also a conscious acceptance of the awesome tasks that lie ahead, such as dealing with the huge debt, poverty, unemployment, corruption, and constitutional reform.

Supplementally, she brought hope to a people who have become understandably hopeless and despondent; she reiterated the importance of implementing JEEP. This is where Mrs Simpson Miller’s pragmatism floated to the top and showed Jamaicans that her administration is not unaware of their plight and that the Government is up to the task of finding viable solutions to the myriad social and economic problems that currently obtain.

By mentioning her Government’s intention to depart from the disgusting “blame-game” habit, she succeeded in setting herself apart as an implementer.

It is obvious, as communicated throughout her speech, that the Simpson Miller administration will operate as a team — a seismic shift from the leader-centric approach of the Andrew Holness-led administration. She stressed consultation, partnership, accountability and in a remarkable show of continuity, her promise to allow members of Her Majesty’s Opposition to chair parliamentary committees is evidence of the kind of political maturity Jamaicans have long yearned for. It is to her credit that she made her Government’s intentions known so early in its tenure.

Importantly, it was the strong reassuring words given to the Jamaican private and public sectors, and to the international community, including the International Monetary Fund and the diaspora, that the PNP-led administration will continue to maintain tight fiscal management, pursue growth-inducing strategies, concentrate on debt management and reduction as a function of GDP that made the significant difference this time round. Those who previously harboured the view that Mrs Simpson Miller would preside over a foolish populist spending spree were sorely disappointed by her mature and sober commitment.

By underscoring the key economic philosophy that economic activities rightly belong to private sector, Mrs Simpson Miller signalled her awareness of the role of the State, albeit within the context of providing economic stimulation through programmes such as JEEP.

She put the “icing on the cake” by pledging her administration’s commitment to upholding the rule of law, to serve with humility, transparency and openness, to reject governmental extravagance and to eliminate corruption. Her appeal to Jamaicans to take personal responsibility for their lives and to invest in self-development, even as Government provides the context for them to do so, was a masterstroke.

She was honest in her proclamations, especially when she reminded us that “the challenges would not disappear overnight”, but we should “believe with her and play our part in Jamaica’s transformation”.

Burnscg@aol.com