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Just enough democracy

EditorialJust enough democracy
The oligarchy/aristocracy who run Belize must be given credit for their great skill, intelligence and diplomacy. They dole out just enough democracy to make sure that anybody who thinks or talks revolution, looks or sounds crazy.
 
We’ll give you just one example. Take the matter of Belizean sports. The Hyde family had been agitating for decades about the injustices in Belizean sports. So when a son of this newspaper’s publisher was elected to the House of Representatives in August of 1998, he was immediately made Minister of Sports. The favored instrument of the oligarchy/aristocracy, Hon. Ralph Fonseca, made sure, however, that there was no money for sports. There was money for the Novelos, money for Intelco, money for Jim Jan Muhammed, but precious little for sports.
 
The inexperienced Cordel was hamstrung at every turn. It was not that he was the target. The oligarchy/aristocracy was really targeting his father and his uncles, who had been agitating, to repeat, for decades. Perhaps Cordel should have cried out against the Cabinet injustices. But in 1998, he was a rookie, remember, and no doubt awed by his surroundings.
 
As if to prove that the oligarchy/aristocracy’s problem was a family one – the Partridge Street Hydes, Ralph Fonseca made the same “pappyshow” of Cordel’s father as he was making of Cordel. Evan X Hyde lobbied Prime Minister Musa to become chairman of the national university. Musa agreed. Fonseca then proceeded to reduce the university’s budget every single year Hyde was there.
 
Ralph was saying, in effect, the same medicine for the father as for the son. And to hell with the Hydes and their sports obsession.
 
The above thoughts were sparked by the recent, spookily quiet naming of the Belize delegation to this year’s Olympic Games in China. Study the delegation carefully, and you will conclude that Belizean sports, which should be the one area where roots Belizeans can show themselves, is firmly controlled by the oligarchy/aristocracy. And there is nothing the Hydes can say now, because all the oligarchy/aristocracy will say is as follows: You all made a lot of noise – weren’t you the Minister of Sports?
 
And all we can say is, Ministry without money is jokes. And so, in 2008, still no track for our great young athletes. Belize, baby, it’s just enough democracy. Just enough democracy to prevent revolution. Sports is just one example. There are several more.

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