I tweeted this on June 17th. It's something I rarely speak about on Twitter, I'll do it today.
The JLP has had a helluva run. They have reworked political interaction completely. They were forced to do this (IMO) because of the heavy PNP bias in general media. Their stumbling block became their stepping stone.
(Don't waste my time trying to deny the bias, we all know it)
(Don't waste my time trying to deny the bias, we all know it)
The bias led to Holness working with and through who I have to admit is a local PR genius, Nesta Morgan. Nesta pulled the administration and JLPs communications inward, and then put it directly to the people. No biased middleman to interfere. This had never occurred before.
Suddenly we didn't need to wait in Dion to tell us what to think about a PMs words, we could get them ourselves. We didn't need Ian to explain the best reaction and response to a government move, we got to do it ourselves. He democratized the information flow. It worked.
Then, (IMO) as a direct response to the previous PM, Holness made (managed) accessibility a common thing. You didn't see your PM & Ministers once or twice a yr or shaking hands in farin on news, you saw them on your phone from a live feed of a Town Hall. Which happens regularly.
We went years with barefaced silence from the previous PM and the media went along with it. (Don't waste my time telling me they raised an outcry, they bawled out in years 2 and 3 of the silence...2 years of taking it and going along happily)
But as I said, along came a change. Holness was accessible and visible. Town Halls carry the production values of small parties, communications were measured but regular, and the Jamaican people started seeing something we've never seen before. Responsiveness.
The JLP admin has NOT gotten it all right, but that responsiveness has been a thorn in the side of the Opposition PNP. It never occurred to the PNP that as Opposition, they could raise an issue and the Govs response is "Hmm... This is true, brb gonna fix it". 🤯
They never did this while in Government, because it's not the way of The Party to question open or defy openly once The Party has agreed on a direction. And listening to the people and changing course on a decision has always been seen as a weakness. Till now.
The examples are all over. I noticed it first on 07/08 when Golding adjusted the budget based on pubic outcry. I remember telling a bredrin that this is the 1st time that Jcan people have seen direct outcry about a small change being listened to. And we liked it, were hooked now.
The PNP have stumbled & struggled under this new outlook. The Party can't try the old "convince them they're suffering" lie, the growth is obvious. They can't take the "moral high ground" because they tried to get Paulwell to lead that, which shows you how seriously they take it.
But 2 things have not been covered by the JLP, two holes they seem to have glaringly forgotten.
1. This is PNP Country. (Please don't waste my time arguing against this, it's who we are, it's simply true. It may change, but for now 🤷🏾♂️)
2. The PNP are MASTER political strategists.
1. This is PNP Country. (Please don't waste my time arguing against this, it's who we are, it's simply true. It may change, but for now 🤷🏾♂️)
2. The PNP are MASTER political strategists.
The PNP stopped trying to convince people that they were better. Their track record keeping proving otherwise. Instead, (Imo) the strategy shifted to removing some of that "angelic" light that the new Admin had started to be bathed in.
When Wheatley first happened, I called for Holness to immediately remove him, because "not even the impression of corruption should be allowed". I was told I was rash for saying this. 5 months of news has vindicated me.
See, (IMO) the master strategists in The Party decided to play a game that was subtle and effective. The only defence against it was immediately removing Wheatley, and running a heavy cleaning operation at PCJ/Petrojam. The second Holness delayed on this, he took the L.
They knew that PCJ/Petrojam is dirty, it always has been and Paulwell used to have oversight on it so 🤷🏾♂️. What they also know is that Jamaicans don't care if PNP steals or mismanages, we like it. But a clean JLP is an uncomfortable comparison, so they went after that.
They didn't care if Wheatley was guilty or not or if some of the mismanagement tagged them in it. The party that is ok with a few people ding on order to secure leadership has no problem with a little mud hitting thenlm, as long as you get mud up too. Enter Mudman Wheatley.
The real effort has been completed centered around having the JLP appear corrupt. Because the measure of success is when a regular person says "the 2 party them a the same". It doesn't matter that they aren't, they just need it to be seen that way.
Because if both parties "a di same", then we revert to simply doing what we like and what we've always done. This is PNP Country. That's our default. (Again, don't waste time arguing with me. Just ask yourself, why do police unions accept lower offers based on who is in Gov?)
If the PNP can allow people to think that both parties are the same, then they don't need to worry about communicating, about speaking to issues, about finding solutions. They can just say "SEE, THEM DID DO IT TO!!!" And it works. Check your TL. See what the responses have been.
Paulwell lightly came out & said "yeah, some robbery did happen while I was there yes, but look at what's happening now! We need to put more us on these boards too" that was a legit response & recommendation. (Paraphrased of course).
We teef, dem teef, put some of us in now too🤷🏾♂️
We teef, dem teef, put some of us in now too🤷🏾♂️
The real issue with this is, the JLP allowed it to happen. Anyone with even a light knowledge of PCJ/Petrojam knows how corrupt that place has been for DECADES, yet Holness allowed it to stay & didnt send someone careful to fix it. Maybe he thought the PNP wasn't desperate enough
From a strategic standpoint, that's the major issue. You sent an incompetent to handle a trouble Ministry, & then hugged him up when the first bomb fell though you had ample warning. See, again, PCJ wasn't the issue, the JLPs scandal free nature was the issue. You gave them this.
We all know that most people won't read the report, most won't care that is not new, most won't care that the problems are still employed to the problem entities. They just see one thing "di 2 party dem a di same thing". You gave them fuel for that fire.
That fire might be all The Party needs to burn it's way right back into Government. No matter that JA is found better than it ever has, that's how being said to be a product of 2013-2017. Why you think PNP keeps saying "xyz was our plan" or "in the pipeline"?
If both parties are the same, & the effects being seen are just one side executing the others plans, then switching shouldn't really matter right?
For every 1 person who knows better about this, 10 don't know & 20 don't care. This is PNP Country. You've made them relevant again.
For every 1 person who knows better about this, 10 don't know & 20 don't care. This is PNP Country. You've made them relevant again.
You delayed on moving (IMO) a friend, & now have a political headache to concentrate on when you could've handled it swiftly & cleanly months ago. You know the JLP doesn't enjoy media bias, Wheatleys 9Day has lasted half a year & will continue till the next election. Your fault.
To make matters worse, you had the incompetent stand in Parliament and lie straight faced to the people. Something we're only used to from one set, you have now given that set the parity they longed for over the past few years. You fell for the red herring, despite warnings.
Strategically, I see only one way out, clean the dirty house. Take the L (you already have). Clean the other houses. Then move straightforward into the next election. Keep the convo high, admit the mistakes (key!), & continue the work. Taking the L is going to be VERY important.
Taking that L, and using it as an excuse to OPENLY clean many other long standing dens of trouble, will be the best method of maintaining your momentum and turning the Wheatley stumbling block, into a stepping stone. Do not delay again & do not think you can ignore it in silence.
If you try the ignore or "form an inquiry" route you will do further significant damage. You have to, once again, change the Jamaican experience of dealing with corruption. Start with Wheatley. The mandate and response HAS to be open (to the people) and strong.
Finally. If you allow @Aowheatley to remain or ever again touch any administrative position in Government you will have proven yourself not just incompetent, but arrogant and blind and we as a nation (and you and your party) will face the consequences. I trust that you won't.
I remind you again of your own words and the mandate you have been given.
Don't fall into hypocrisy. Prove that you continue to be better than those who came before. Do the right thing @AndrewHolnessJM.
Don't fall into hypocrisy. Prove that you continue to be better than those who came before. Do the right thing @AndrewHolnessJM.
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