THE Concise Oxford English Dictionary defines the verb “implode” as “collapse or cause to collapse violently inwards”. The Opposition People’s National Party (PNP), over these past months, seems hell-bent on imploding, as two warring factions do battle, owing to an ongoing contention regarding the leadership of party President Mark Golding.

Notwithstanding the fact that Golding was duly elected by the delegates after a bruising contest between his camp and the Lisa Hanna-led “Onesies”, disgruntled elements in the party have remained defiant, questioning the legitimacy of Golding to lead Norman Manley’s party. Incidentally, the Onesies are so named because they continue to insist that there is only “one PNP” – how ironic – while pouring scorn on those they have dubbed as the Rise United Movement (RUM), a group said to be led by Peter Bunting who had challenged former party leader Dr Peter Phillips and lost.

While various conspiracy theories continue to swirl inside and outside of that beleaguered party, a crushing and humiliating defeat was handed down to the PNP in 2020 by the Andrew Holness-led Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), which now has an overwhelming majority in the House of Representatives. It is no secret that disunity, a lack of sufficient financial resources, and widescale disenchantment among Comrades led to that debacle.

Additionally, discerning political analysts have successfully argued that the PNP is expected to have a long sojourn in the political wilderness due to the harsh reality that the party has lost its way. Indeed, the PNP can best be described as a character in search of an author.

Jamaica’s modern political system emerged from the rivalry between two cousins – Alexander Bustamante and Norman Manley. The former an unrepentant capitalist, while the latter espoused socialism. Regrettably, while the JLP has maintained a solid love affair with western capitalism, the PNP has wobbled from socialism to democratic socialism, and after its 1980 demoralising defeat at the peak of the Cold War, Michael Manley, upon his return to power in 1989, discarded his Kareeba, which was a symbol of socialist defiance, and clothed himself in “jacket and tie”, perhaps attempting to signal to the Jamaican people that the PNP was prepared to embrace the capitalist ethos, while retaining its democratic socialist ideological stance. What a mix-up!

It is in this quandary that the PNP now finds itself, with hard-line Comrades dubbing Golding as a white capitalist who should not be at the helm of a socialist party. In the meantime, there is no clarity as to Lisa Hanna’s ideological stance, and her bid for the throne at 89 Old Hope Road was somewhat enshrouded in her own ambivalence, as well as the perception that her greatest attribute for leadership is her beauty.

It is interesting to note that after the 1980 defeat, a new Michael Manley was in ascendancy. Beverley Manley, in her book, The Manley Memoirs, said, “Soon, what I perceived as Michael’s reform began. This came about at the same time I was reassessing my marriage. A different set of people would visit Michael at Washington Close, including some from the private sector and the party’s right wing. Michael’s popularity among the masses continued to be huge, but he yearned to be loved by his own social class again, as [he had] been in 1972 before ideology took over the party, the way things had been during the Camelot years when he could do no wrong, when it seemed all of Jamaica supported him and the PNP.”

The potent question here is: If Michael Manley had lived longer, would he have fallen out with that faction in the PNP that continues to court democratic socialism? Because, from all indications, the former Comrade leader was headed towards coming to terms not only with his class, but also the realisation that political pragmatism may well have to supersede one’s or the party’s ideological position in order to bring about meaningful change for the masses, while tolerating the elite class. His last marriage to Glynne Manley is perhaps an indication that Michael had come to terms with his class.

So where does this leave the PNP today? Is it fair for some Comrades to be dismissing the idea of a white man leading the party, while another faction is saying they do not want a woman of Indian descent to rule over them? What a ‘hataclaps’! And let us not forget that PJ Patterson had to use all his available political skills to meander through the many minefields that were put in his path because of his pigmentation. His successor, Portia Simpson Miller, was to suffer an even worse fate because of her educational and social background. Kudos to them both for having survived the slings and arrows of outrageous bigotry!

For now, two major challenges are looming on the horizon, which may well help to define Golding’s leadership. One is the local government elections and the other is the annual party conference. The million-dollar question is: Will he be challenged and who will be the four vice-presidents when the dust settles? Already, Dr Peter Philips has set hand by appointing Senators, most of whom are not loyal to Golding. And Phillips’s continued hold on his parliamentary seat remains like the sword of Damocles over Golding’s head.

Amidst all this conundrum, Jamaica is desperately in need of an effective, strong, and united Opposition. Left to itself, the Andrew Holness-led JLP has the capacity – if not inclination – to become increasingly corrupt and dictatorial. For the sake of Jamaica’s democracy, “Brogad” and his battalions must not be allowed to take Jamaicans for granted, having no regard for the necessary checks and balances to ensure that we live in a society that is safe and secure, prosperous, and equitable.

To put it bluntly, Jamaica’s democratic way of life, enshrined in its age-old and workable two-party system, may well be in jeopardy as Comrades, in a most ill-advised manner, fight for control of the party without paying attention to the collateral damage to the nation’s body politic. In this regard, Golding must be told that there comes the time when every successful leader has to be ruthless. There must be a limit to his tolerance level. If the delegates have spoken in his favour, then his detractors should cease and desist. As the late Eddie Seaga would have put it, “There must be a settlement of all argument!”

Lloyd B. Smith has been involved full-time in Jamaican media for the past 45 years. He has also served as a Member of Parliament and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives. He hails from western Jamaica, where he is popularly known as the Governor. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or lbsmith4 @gmail.com.