Today is the 47th anniversary of the by-election in St Ann South Eastern, when the late Seymour Mullings retained the seat for the People’s National Party (PNP). Garland Lloyd, son of Dr Ivan Lloyd, was the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) candidate. Veteran PNP parliamentarian Dr Ivan Lloyd had resigned from both the PNP and Parliament in February 1969. He cited differences with the new PNP President Michael Manley who succeeded his father Norman Washington Manley.

While March 17, 1969 was the date of the by-election, the local government elections were held the day after. The Jamaica Labour Party was in power and Hugh Shearer was prime minister. Clearly the Hugh Shearer-led JLP Government was hoping that the Lloyd popularity would bring a victory for them in St Ann South Eastern, and by putting the local government elections the day after, the JLP would take control of the St Ann Parish Council — neither of which happened.

But there was one problem with the day-apart elections. How would the voters in St Ann South Eastern show up for the local government elections the following day with clean fingers having stained them in voters ink the day before? This question was raised by the then Member of Parliament (MP) for Eastern Kingston and Port Royal, Florizel Glasspole (later governor general).

The JLP got around it by withdrawing their six local government candidates in St Ann South Eastern, so those parish council seats went unopposed to the PNP. What would have happened had there been local government candidates from other parties or independents who refused to withdraw would have been anyone’s guess.

The PNP’s Seymour Mullings easily won the by-election because the PNP constituency organisation was efficient. Dr Ivan Lloyd, who set up the PNP organisation, changed sides to support his JLP son, Garland, but this did not swing the strong PNP organisation to the JLP.

All of 47 years later, in 2016, it is still possible to hold day-apart elections because the law was never changed. And not only the JLP, but the PNP is also guilty, because they have been in power for at least 31 years out of 47 since that time and did not change it either.

I wrote about this St Ann South Eastern incident at the time of the death of Dr Ivan Lloyd in 1993, and at other times when mentioning the career of Seymour Mullings. But there are no votes to be gained by amending the law, so the matter is no longer politically expedient.

In 1967, the Norman Manley-led PNP protested the results of the general election which they lost when the JLP’s Sir Donald Sangster became prime minister. The PNP complained that the voters’ list was inadequate. At that time the Government was responsible for carving constituency boundaries and the PNP also argued that this was unfairly done.

In 1976, the JLP complained about multiple voting in the general election of that year which they lost to the Michael Manley-led PNP. The JLP, under the leadership of Edward Seaga, pushed for electoral reform, which came in 1979 with the establishment of the Electoral Advisory Commission. Despite pushing for electoral reform, in 1983 a snap election was called by then Prime Minister Edward Seaga on a three-year-old voters’ list, which the PNP boycotted.

After Norman Manley resigned his seat on February 28, 1969, the people of St Andrew East Central had to wait for more than six months for a by-election that was held on September 2 that year, which incidentally was the same day that Norman Manley died. In that by-election, Dr Kenneth McNeill retained the seat for the PNP.

No law was ever amended to ensure that any of our citizens would not be without representation for an extended period of time, although, again, 47 years have passed and worse was yet to come. The JLP’s Shahine Robinson shocked the PNP by winning the by-election in St Ann North Eastern on March 8, 2001. The P J Patterson-led PNP was in power, and later that year Francis Tulloch resigned as MP for St James North Western.

No by-election was held and the people of St James North Western went without representation in Parliament for roughly a year and a half, until the 2002 General Election. Yet, in 1969, the Michael Manley-led PNP staged protest demonstrations in Half-Way-Tree by way of placards and political meetings to complain about the six-month delay in holding the St Andrew East Central by-election. Talk about political expediency!

In the present scenario, despite the talk before the recent general election to have fixed election dates, my guess is that such a change is not coming any time soon. Apart from the fact that such a system cannot work in the Westminster model, a fixed election date cannot suit the present JLP Government with a one-seat majority, just as it could not suit the PNP had they been in power with a one-seat majority.

Don’t get me wrong. I am for fixed election dates, but it cannot work unless the Government is selected separately from the legislature, as in the United States of America. Ironically, it was the JLP that prevented any overhaul of the constitution that would have come with republic status.

They called for a referendum to decide on the Caribbean Court of Justice because of expediency. For republic status to come there would eventually be a referendum anyway, which would have included the courts of justice as it did with the American Constitution. There is no need for separate referenda.

The referendum in 1961, which was held to decide whether to continue being a part of the West Indies Federation, was won by the JLP and they clearly hoped that a referendum on whatever issue would work in their favour again. Here, political expediency is apparently far more important than the common good. So, if politicians only act out of expediency the voters of Jamaica need to choose what is best and then let the politicians know what is politically expedient for them.

ekrubm765@yahoo.com