Promises spoken, promises broken

TERRENCE HONORÉ

AN ELECTION promise not kept is a stain on any political party and pain for people of any community. This has been a central part of our political history. In fact, the performance of a government might well be measured by how many promises are fulfilled rather than what was promised on the political platforms.

In the old days a man was as good as his word. That was an excellent measuring stick for any performance. Likewise, in the field of politics, where tricks of the trade sometimes outweigh the trade, we have to be careful to consider integrity in public office, including where have all the promises gone.

The balancing of the scales should fit into our schema, where the goodies offered by the political parties are placed on one side and the practicable things on the other side. To quote the good book, Daniel 5:27: “Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.”

The glowing promises of the platform speeches, the flowery “slanguage” of articulate artisans of the art of politics fill our minds with admiration and move our hands to stain our fingers, to vote for worth, not worthless promises. It’s plenty icing, but little cake – sweet, but most times lacking in substance.

Political parties should be made to pay for promises not kept. There should be a demerit system assigned to each party on the road after the election. Plenty of promises mean you have more to account for and a less gullible people would revise the strategy that got them voting and hoping for changes. We need some political promises police.

It always seems to be a case of spoken promises, broken promises.

Like a bride to the proverbial altar, voters are led to believe in the sweet lyrics and vows made, but alas, we have to live each five-year term with a set of unfulfilled promises. After the election, we wake up to find that many of the vows spoken have been callously broken.

Political parties driving up the road in their motorcades will say and sing anything to get voters to put on the “political ring,” then its horn all the way down the road. Fancy flags and paraphernalia flying high, but after the election, most of the promises are gone with the wind. Some politicians wouldn’t give a tart or a glass of mauby for your voting effort.

Even the famed bards of Barbados, The Merrymen, once sang, “Ring ting ting...every year is the same thing, all you do is promising...well you promised me a house and a motorcar.” It seems like every election is the same thing, all they do is promising. Many voters become haters, because they are denied some of the rewards from the success of the election victory, not realising that all the euphoria might only be for some of the party faithful and not for them.

After the election, finger stains only last for a day or two. But ink remains longer than some promises uttered on the political platforms. As soon as some campaign promises are spoken they die a sudden political death. Politicians say whatever they want and hope the voting public forgets. But our memory is longer than twine. So, rum and roti and a little gyration by an inebriated supporter can’t take away the stain and the shame of broken political promises.

Something seems to go wrong between when the promise is said and when the promise is dead. We have to do some forensics to determine what is killing the promises. Many politicians put their heart in it, but two ticks in time and promises done. They need to exercise prudence and good sense, to avoid the pretence that passes for promises. We don’t need outside observers to see that broken promises are killing us. There is a case for political abuse of the population.

The book of wisdom Ecclesiastes says, “It is better to promise nothing than to promise something and not be able to fulfil it.” Remember that when we promise, we promise to God and not just to man. So let’s promise on, but promise well. Unkept promises are like living in hell on Earth.

Meanwhile, the list of broken political promises is extensive, one political party adding to another while the people continue to suffer. The architects of our demise write in glossy manifestos but fail to implement the full measure of the intent of the party promises. I have been around long enough to see what failed promises have done to us as a people. There needs to be some real soul-searching when we promise with one hand and take away with the other.

But we must praise God for the promises kept – as few as they might be. A highway extended, some houses built, but the nation is still on stilts, propped up by promises that haven’t been kept for years. It seems that glorious, glowing words are not easily kept in this paradise of ours. But where there is a crime there is a cause. To fix it we must declare only what can be truthfully done. After the election is won, under God’s good sun, please let all the good promises spoken remain unbroken.