According to Google, a referendum is “a general vote for the electorate on a single political question that has been referred to them for a direct decision”. The first and last time that Jamaica had a referendum was on September 19, 1961. Interestingly, it was the anniversary of the launch of the People’s National Party (PNP) in 1938. Voters were asked: Should Jamaica remain in the Federation of the West Indies?

Alexander Bustamante and the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) defeated the Norman Manley-led PNP in that historic referendum. Of the 453, 580 people who voted, representing only 60.87 per cent of the eligible voters on the list, 54 per cent voted “no” and 46 per cent “yes”. Following the referendum, Manley made it clear that Jamaica would secede and become independent on its own. It is to be noted that after some amount of vacillation, Bustamante insisted that a bipartisan parliamentary committee be established to represent Jamaica in the talks that would follow with respect to the road to Independence. Of course, the JLP took advantage of its victory to call an early election, which it won, and the rest, as they say, is history. Jamaica became an independent nation on August 6, 1962.

The next referendum that Jamaicans will face is the question of whether Jamaica should continue to have the British monarch as its head of State and all the trappings that go with it.

Intriguingly, Legal and Constitutional Affairs Minister Marlene Malahoo Forte, who has been spearheading the Constitutional Reform Committee (CRC) on behalf of the JLP-led Government, has already opined that holding such a referendum may well be a “risky affair”. No doubt, she, like other well-thinking Jamaicans, may well be concerned about the possible partisan turn this exercise could take, with Jamaicans thinking “green” or “orange” rather than “black, green and gold”. Indeed, one of the challenges that the JLP is likely to face is whether it should call a general election prior to the holding of this pivotal referendum.

Interestingly, September 2025, when the next general election is due, would mark the anniversary of that party’s resounding victory over the PNP.

Does history have a way of repeating itself? In this case, however, both the JLP and the PNP are united on the issue of Jamaica becoming a republic despite a number of differences and concerns, such as whether the head of State should be selected or elected and the contentious matter of the UK Privy Council. In the case of the latter, the recent ruling by the British Law Lords with respect to the Vybz Kartel (Adidja Palmer) et al legal conundrum may well pose a serious roadblock to the rocky road to becoming a republic as many Jamaicans have formed the view that the Privy Council is a better fit than the Caribbean Court of Appeal, in terms of arriving at what it perceived as a fair judgment. What a preckeh!

Meanwhile, in an apparent pre-emptive move — which was blatantly ill-advised — state minister in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Alando Terrelonge recently told a British news entity, The Independent, that Jamaica would be parting company with King Charles III as the country’s head of State in 2025. Needless to say, this intemperate utterance could have further politicised the tortuous matter of constitutional reform, which, in the very final analysis, will need national as well as bipartisan consensus.

If the state minister were sufficiently in tune with the ramifications of the constitutional reform process, he would have been aware that there are several procedural steps that must be taken before there can be that crucial referendum. Clearly, based on the various timelines stipulated in the Jamaican Constitution as well as by parliamentary decree, it seems virtually impossible that a referendum can be held before the calling of the next general election. In any event, the Opposition PNP has consistently stated that it will not support the removal of the British monarch as head of State without the simultaneous removal of the UK Privy Council as Jamaica’s final court.

In a most foolhardy way, the JLP has been using its overwhelming majority in the House of Representatives to ram certain bits of legislation down the throat of the Opposition and, by extension, the Jamaican people. However, by now it should be aware that it cannot use such modus operandi when it comes to constitutional matters, as has become so painfully clear every time such a move is challenged by the Opposition PNP in court.

After winning that first referendum in 1961, Bustamante saw the vital need for a bipartisan way forward — and not just in the cosmetic way that is espoused in the politics of today. In 2024 and going forward, Bustamante’s JLP, now led by Andrew Michael Holness, must find a way to unite this country around this burning issue of becoming a republic. He must be warned that this will not be achieved by playing raw political games or one-upmanship. He must dig deep in his psyche and come up with a patriotic, not partisan, approach in taking our beloved country into that new era of self-determination, bereft of any vestiges of colonialism or narrow partisan aggrandisement. Is Brogad man enough for such a challenge?

As a parting shot, I would urge Prime Minister Holness to engage the services and advice of two of our most respected and elderly statesmen, PJ Patterson and Bruce Golding, and have them as the point men who can help unite the nation around this common cause.

As it stands now, the road to the Jamaican republic is plagued by several potholes, and if the constitutional reform process is not properly managed, there could be serious roadblocks or even a major landslide which will ensure that Jamaica’s quest to be rid of the British monarch becomes a prolonged and painful affair.

Lloyd B Smith has been involved in Jamaican media for the past 49 years. He has 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.