COMMENTARY

Law and Politics: What went wrong - and why?

by Lloyd Noel

Tuesday, December 14, 2004

A judge once wrote these words in his written judgment, before sentencing a man who was found guilty before him - “Let so much admitted : all of us have erred; in the lives of every one of us deeds have been done, words spoken, even thoughts conceived whose remembrance is grievous, whose burden is intolerable.”

There is no doubting those words of wisdom, from someone who was responsible for passing sentence on those who did wrong and broke the law.

But it did not mean that the wrong-doer should go unpunished, it showed that the judge was preparing the way to temper justice with mercy; and that should be the benchmark for all.

In the same breath, when things go wrong for whatever reason, merely broadcasting the wrong-doing, without trying to find out the reason why it went wrong, can never provide a solution.

And in the contrary, to have discovered wrong-doing at any level and keep it hidden, because of who is suspected or alleged to have been responsible, is just as bad or even worse.

Against that background, the sudden departure of those Trinidadian Defence Force Personnel, T&Tec Electricity tradesmen, and the community workers from the CEPEP programme - who all came to our rescue in the aftermath of Ivan - must bring into play the four Ws question in the above headline.
Of course, if and when certain action is taken with the wrong motives in mind, or under false pretences to secure sympathy from others, then the chances are that the venture could very well backfire and blow up in the pretender’s face.

And the well known secret surrounding the T&T Defence Forces presence in post Ivan Grenada, pertaining to an imminent coup attempt to take over control of that Government from the NNP camp, was the main reason for securing the T&T personnel emergency trip to our ravaged Island . That was so farfetched it was not funny, and, maybe because it was so deceptive in the place, it had to end as abruptly as it began.

How and where that crazy notion ties in with the more laudable and community inspiring services provided by T&Tec and the CEPEP Workers I really do not know thus far, but something very nagging keeps alerting me that there is much more in that mortar besides the pestle.

I have seen the Trinidad Sunday Guardian report on the conditions under which those CEPEP workers had to function, and those were shocking and disgraceful.

But even before the report appeared on the Friday before the said Sunday, P.M. Manning, in the T&T Parliament, had announced that all the personnel in Grenada were coming back home on the 7th of December. What prompted that sudden decision?

If it was truly for joining their families for Christmas, a date and occasion well known by all, why the abrupt three days notice to pack up and get out?

The security situation to-date is no worse nor better than when the defence forces arrived; the looting has already taken place, and the prison disturbance was not beyond the local security control. It could be that the presence of strange security personnel, fully armed and always traveling about in their transport, was a silent deterrent, and maybe a boost for our depressed local police.

But somehow I am of the opinion, that the more testing time, from a security and social unrest viewpoint, is still ahead and in some places just beginning to raise their ugly faces in one form or another. And If I am right with that assessment, then we are far more in need of a strong and visible defence Force presence now-a-days, than we were in the days immediately after Ivan.

And because our own Police Force and SSU division, have serious shortcomings in one form or another from many angles, they cannot be really expected to come up trumps.

I frankly cannot see what significant difference the new Political Directorate, in the person of Senator Einstein Louison will make - and time is of the essence in dealing with the police, in both the short and long terms.

It cannot be said and repeated too often - that if law and order, and a stable security system, are not ever present in any society - then the streets could be cast in gold and diamond, but life and living conditions will be worthless and a sham.

Looking again at that ongoing conditions, resulting from the Ivan massacre; in addition to hearing about the galvanize programme for the most needy families to put back a roof over their heads - a scheme being implemented by the Red Cross - I saw a report last week that the Government has sourced, or in the process of so doing, a fund from an international financial Institution to be used for advancing lans to home-owners to repair their damaged roofs etc.

The interest quoted was 3 or 4% and the limit per family was $40,000.00 with a one year grace before commencing repayment.
At least everything I write in this column cannot all be “diatribe” - according to a coward who is afraid or ashamed to put his real name when he writes to the Editor.

Because if that coward was indeed reading, or perhaps able to understand what he was reading, then he would not be mis-representing the things I write in his attempted criticisms. Or how should be writing to say that the Government and Red Cross, and who ever else maybe donating the galvanize and the source of funds - they are all accepting and following the “diatribe” almost to the letter, from “Law and Politics”.

On the other side of that coin, I wish to publicly thank all those persons who stop me on the street, or phone me at home or the University, to say how much they look forward to this article.

Not that they agree with what I write, but that they welcome a different point of view which allows them to think, to analyse, to balance against what they may have heard or read elsewhere - and by so doing arrive at a truly informed conclusion.

The one pity about all the above, is that those persons who form the basis of what the public opinion should be projecting - they are remaining silent.

And in a truly functioning parliamentary democracy, their silence is serious loss to the democratic process.

That famous and wise U.S. President, the late Abraham Lincoln, once said that if he had to chose between the opinion of the members of the congress, and that of the public opinion, he would choose the latter every time.

He is the person who also said - when asked by his aides why he keeps his enemies so close - that every time he makes an enemy a friend, he loses another enemy.

Against that background, I heard while writing this article, that our Prime Minister is on the verge of making an official visit to mainland Communist China, after his visit to London, England - which started last Friday.

I do not pretend to know what political gymnastics our prime Minister is playing, but if I were in a position to advise that Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan, I would most certainly have advised them to withdraw their offer of rebuilding the National Stadium for Grenada.

I do not know whether the said offer was a total package, or a partial one, and the Prime Minister is on the look out for the balance for funding. But whatever it maybe, our devoted and long-standing trusted friends from Taiwan should not be subjected to that levee of cheap and undignified political prostitution by this Government of the NNP in particular, whose Prime Minister seems to have no gratitude, nor shame.

Oh, Grenada, my heart bleeds for you. To think that a Prime Minister of post revolution, and post intervention or rescue mission, could be so naïve to fall for the Beijing crap, is enough to support and campaign for another revolution, to bring about change and sanity in our ntional rebuilding and restructuring process.

The people close to the Prime Minister are clearly just as responsible for his actions, because he cannot be taking those decisions without the knowledge and support of his Cabinet - and since no one has commented adversely, or resigned - then they are collectively liable to our people themselves have to take some of the blame because they are remaining mute in public. I do get quite a number of supporting phone calls and personal approaches for my stand - but this is not good enough .

You are paying the piper, so you must call the tune - and call it publicly.

To think that you are powerless, is to have already surrendered your strength to someone who is going to manipulate your weakness. The signs are very clear, you do not have to wait on the happenings to ask, what went wrong - and why?

Lloyd Noel is a former Attorney General of Grenada, prominent attorney at law and political commentator.

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