Barack Obama was elected the first black president of the United States on mostly his very optimistic message of hope and change. The country was going through an almost depression-era-like economy in 2008/09, and his message resounded favorably with the majority of Americans. I believe that one of the most important missions of a government is to give its citizens hope that their lives will improve, hope that the lives of their children will be better, with schools, employment, and a safe environment in which to grow. I also believe that the Briceño government was given a mandate to fulfill these promises to the Belizean people, just as the Obama administration was, given what they had been through in the later years of the previous administrations. In Belize, it was a cesspool of corruption, stagnation, and a blatant disregard for the dire straits that the country was in, economically, socially, and maybe even spiritually. And so the people came out en masse, and voted, for hope, for change!

We expect our leaders to lead, not in a righteous way (that’s for the churches), but to lead with dignity and respect for their citizens. To show impartiality always, not to become caught up in tit for tat, or intervening in matters that are not for the good of the country, just for some special few. When a party is elected, especially the manner in which this party won in the last election, it tells you that they were supported by members of the opposing party, in very large numbers. It doesn’t mean that these voters changed parties; they voted for change, and hope.

This flowers-gate incident is very disappointing and very distracting at the same time. When the leader of a country becomes involved in the flowers minutiae, he is not paying attention to urgent matters of state, like inflation, unbelievably high fuel costs, crime, etc. He is responsible for the the state of the nation, and his various ministers, and their subordinates, handle everyday problems that might arise. There is no reason for the leader of the country to become personally involved in something this trivial, that members of the ministry related to the department in question have control over, including the responsibility for its smooth management—such as adhering to the laws and rules, and making sure that those rules are followed to the letter of the law, not to be changed by whims and fancies.

We are always afraid of speaking truth to power, and hold back for fear of retribution. But we don’t live in Russia, or China. Living in a democracy gives us that right, to call out wrongs when we see them, and thank goodness Belize is a democracy, and so a free press flourishes! No one is above the law, although sometimes it seems that way, and we should always hold our leaders’ feet to the fire when they wander off the path of good governance. The people voted for hope and change, I believe, not for the same ole, same ole!

Glen