Dear Editor,

The results of the recently held local government elections have left many Jamaicans with mixed emotions, ranging from excitement to confusion, then indifference.

There has been a constant tug of war between the country’s two main political parties – People’s National Party (PNP) and Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) – about the victors of the election. In a series of press conferences, interviews, press releases, and social media posts, both parties have persistently maintained that they have won the elections. Even after a week, the debate continues and people have asked me to provide clarity on the results. The Electoral Commission of Jamaica (ECJ), the PNP and the JLP, as well as the media should take responsibility, in part, for this ongoing chaos. Hopefully, this prolonged sports day can finally end, because there are pressing matters at hand.

Prime minister and party leader of the JLP Andrew Holness, in his victory speech, acknowledged that there is work to be done. He understands fully well that in 2024 there are still communities without basic infrastructure, such as good roads and water. He seems to also understand that there is a disconnect between the ever-praised macroeconomics and the lived realities of the average Jamaican. While there remain diehard supporters of both parties, it is more apparent that citizens are willing to hold politicians accountable, irrespective of party colour.

The average person does not care about policies — mostly the intellectual and business sector do; instead, people want to see and feel tangible benefits and outcomes. The Government will need to strike a balance between all the international recognition it has been receiving for fiscal management and how this translates into the lives of the people. Will it happen overnight? Of course not! The country was set back for decades due to bad decisions made by previous Administrations, and the current and future governments have a lot of work to do to ensure that Jamaica continues on a growth path.

The local government elections results revealed some issues that we need to improve as a nation. A most startling one is that many people are ignorant of the differences between the local government elections and general election. When the PNP was prematurely declared winners of the local government elections by a media house, there were folks who thought that Mark Golding, Opposition leader, would become the prime minister of Jamaica the following day. Clearly, a sensitisation campaign is desperately needed — even among university students — about systems of governance and the political voting processes. But perhaps both Golding and Holness contributed to this deception because they were the main figures on the campaign trail. Several people did not have, and still do not have, any idea of who their councillor was (is). For a fact, local government needs to be treated more seriously.

For the past election cycles, we have bemoaned the low voter turnout in both the local government and general elections, which turns out to be a waste of State funds, as not even half of the voting population participates in the process. However, could it be that the voter enumeration list needs to be seriously updated? When last was this exercise conducted? Certainly, there are names of people who are now deceased or who have immigrated and do not intend to return to Jamaica who are still on the list.

Another issue is that an increasing number of people have changed constituencies, but their vote is registered in their original hometowns. Due to distance, many of them do not bother to engage in the voting process.

Should an election day be a no-work day? Should it be on a Sunday? Perhaps those who worship on Sundays would deem it disrespectful and unfair. However, the idea of a no-work day probably should be considered. Think about the many university students from rural Jamaica who attend school in Kingston. How many of them would return to St Elizabeth and St James just to cast their votes, especially when classes are still being held in person. In fact, some of my students were honest in saying that they were not leaving Kingston to go back to rural Jamaica unless their councillor candidates covered their return fair and bought them lunch. A reasonable request?

In this case, the ECJ and the Government should envision ways people can vote without having to travel for many kilometres. Perhaps with the introduction of the National Identification System (NIDS) and investment in technology a trial could be done and assessed.

Still, other people did not vote simply because their councillor candidates or Members of Parliament were unable to assist them when they asked for help. Even though the political representative might have done remarkable work to improve his or her constituency, this was not considered enough for some people. They believe they are entitled to personal demands.

Undoubtedly, a lot of work is needed to further enhance our beloved and admirable democracy, including educational campaigns on differences between and the importance of elections, fora on the duties of different political tiers, and investment in infrastructure to improve voting systems and reduce voter apathy.

Oneil Madden

maddenoniel@yahoo.com