A dull, uninspired campaign

Paolo Kernahan

NEITHER of the major political parties has within its ranks a single captivating speaker, no one to rouse a largely dormant sense of patriotism and pride in being a citizen of TT. Is this the best TT has to offer?

From what I’ve read and heard from both platforms, none of the speeches, flaccid quips, or interview clips flicker with even a tincture of erudition. There’s a vacuum of intellect, worldliness, exceptionalism, charisma – no qualities that suggest any of the aspirants are from patently uncommon stock.

Politicians, in theory, should reflect the most competent among us with unquestionable leadership qualities. Why are we burdened with what appears to be opposites of the ideal? Is this the age of unending kakistocracy?

Stuart Young, Kamla Persad-Bissessar and acolytes in their thrall do not wield the gravitas to energise a jaded segment of the population living in terror of the future, people without the luxury of prideful ignorance and cultish devotion bestowed upon the diehards. Conversations so far have been rooted in recycled promises – which is reasonable given that they emanate from largely recycled politicians.

The dangling of these vapid pledges are sufficient for that most basic of voting cohorts whose primary motivation is rooted in an intense loathing of the "other." As such, the invariably dull and uninspired empty calories are more than enough to inspire them to stain their fingers and, invariably, their souls.

There doesn’t seem to be anyone in this campaign who has invested any effort in learning about the grave challenges at our throats. No one that I’ve found has demonstrated a robust understanding of the best and appropriate strategies for economic diversification, supporting SMEs, boosting food security, uprooting the source of violent criminality, and tackling wage inequalities.

Certainly, there isn’t any evidence that the politicians who’ve submitted themselves for consideration have studied how to communicate complex ideas and their vision for correction in ways ordinary people yoked with extraordinary fallout can easily digest.

All we get are the lazy promises that can’t be borne out by the prevailing economics. Colm Imbert slashed budgets with more gusto than Freddie Krueger; was it all needless austerity? There is no beacon of hope. Nothing advertising competence, ability, or compassion; just dog-eared talking points.

The late MIT professor Patrick Winston is quoted as saying, “Your success in life will be determined largely by your ability to speak, your ability to write, and the quality of your ideas, in that order.”

It’s a particularly striking piece of counsel considering that many of the students graduating from that institution are on the science, engineering, architecture and entrepreneurship tracks. No matter how qualified you are in your field, if you can’t communicate your value to others, success will remain elusive.

US Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders (always the bridesmaid, never the bride) has an almost preternatural ability to deconstruct sinewy subjects for ordinary citizens. He expertly breaks down how decisions in the corporatist and oligarch-dominated Washington directly brush up against their access to healthcare, education for their children, housing, grocery prices, etc. Moreover, Sanders communicates in simple language how people can exert their influence over the political process.

In the US, many eloquent, civic-minded citizens counter the wave of infectious idiocy sweeping that nation at the moment. As such, there’s a counterbalance in the discourse – enough voices fighting injustice, inequality and institutional desecration. And what of TT?

This current crop of politicians, mostly old wine in old bottles, couldn’t sell me a fire extinguisher in the middle of a full-on kitchen grease fire. The flat, uninspired and predictable rhetoric and fear-mongering appeal to primitive instincts in the population.

Such instincts, when leveraged, can’t bring people together, nor are they productive forces in society. In electoral politics, weaponising base emotions is akin to copulation without fertilisation – perpetuating a sterility of thought that serves only the politics, not the people.

The whole world is today a crucible of change – bastions of stability in the West have become disordered and chaotic, having swung to the open embrace of the politics of atavism. Migrant populations are to blame for the "developed" world’s decline and fall; old hatreds are only ever dormant. This home may be the only one many of us have. Perhaps we should consider fixing it rather than moving to a place where we’re not wanted.

So, is this dull, uninspired campaign and cheap hucksters on the hustings the best TT can offer?