Monday, August 26, 2024

Trust is a very important thing in our daily lives, be it in personal relationships, business dealings, or political appeal. Aside from philosophical approaches and superficial appearances, often what an individual judgement boils down to, is a matter of trust. When a relationship is strong, a lot of flaws are overlooked and mistakes forgiven, and even egregious mischief and deceitful actions can sometimes escape observation, or the gravity of the offence not initially realized because of the sustaining element of trust which prevails. But when enough repeated transgressions have finally worn down the feeling of confidence, and doubt begins to enter the heart and mind, or if an action is revealed to be so blatantly deceitful that it shatters the protective insulation from questions of honesty, there is the risk that the long-held element of trust is broken.

Sometimes, the offending party may find a way to make amends, or plea some kind of momentary lapse of sanity or self-control, and manage to win back a level of trust from the offended side; but there are times when the situation is irretrievable, when that trust is gone, and then what? “How do you mend a broken heart?” – Al Green.

In politics, whenever that critical line of trust is broken, there is the inevitable follow-up feeling of betrayal; and that usually spells the beginning of a changing tide in the political climate. But, like in the oceans, the political tide is a slow-changing thing, not abrupt and obvious like a wave crashing onto the shore, or a spurned lover calling it quits; but over time its effects are gradually evident in the body politic, just as subsequent waves reach, inch by inch, slowly further up or down the expanse of sand on the seashore as the tide changes.

The current PUP government has been riding a high wave of success and achievement since coming into office on November 11, 2020; and the opposition party has likewise been floundering with leadership squabbles for years now, so that the next general election looks like a shoo-in for the incumbent PUP.

But, have enough seeds of doubt been planted with the recent $6.9 million hospital land deal saga to cause a breach of trust and a slow changing of the political tide in favor of the UDP in time for the 2030 general election? The upcoming 2025 elections may be a foregone conclusion, but pundits will be observing the next election results closely, to see if they indicate the beginning of such a change of tide. The days and weeks ahead will determine if the current PUP government can correct the errors made in the orchestration of the UB hospital land affair in a satisfactory manner to pull the rug from under the agitators who have been crying “corruption”, and thus avoid an erosion of trust not only in their loyal supporters, but among those independent “swing voters” who have often been the difference in close elections.

Taking office on the heels of what was generally considered a very corrupt UDP administration (“For God’s sake, stop it!”), a major plank in the PUP pledges to a wary electorate was the mantra of “good governance”. But, with the urgency of an economy in shambles, still reeling from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, and burdened by the terrible Super Bond, the new PUP administration was afforded the green light of scant scrutiny or critique by the independent media or an Opposition in shambles, as it embarked on an aggressive economic recovery program that focused on the business, industry, tourism, investment, health, education, culture, lands, housing, etc. etc. aspects of their “BLU-Plan Belize” PUP manifesto. Their first major accomplishment was finalizing negotiations for the debt-for-nature “Blue Bonds” deal (which had commenced under the UDP), and suddenly the albatross of the dreaded Super Bond was no longer hanging so ominously around the collective necks of the Belizean people. Hope was in the air, as the Blue Plan was getting into high gear. And the “good governance” pledge, the last item in the Plan Belize manifesto booklet, had seemingly become an afterthought.

There is no debate as to whether this PUP government has gotten a whole lot done, practically turning the trajectory of Belize’s economy around in its so far four years in office. And the acknowledgement and appreciation for this accomplishment have been evident in the overwhelming PUP victory at the polls in the last Town Board elections as well as in the recent bi-election in Toledo following the passing of incumbent area rep. Mike Espat, R.I.P.

But there are things the PUP has overlooked, important things, which have not been on the front burner amidst all the Plan Belize initiatives. And it would appear that some problems related to the process of decision making, and harking back to the old guidelines of “financial and stores orders”, could be avoided if more attention is given to the items listed in their mandate of “good governance” in Plan Belize.

An Amandala editorial a few days before the November 11, 2020, general elections, highlighted this area of the 2020 PUP manifesto. After all, corruption was the battle cry of Belizeans going to the polls to remove the UDP, and these are the areas they wished to see addressed.

Here is a quoted portion of that Amandala editorial titled, “’Plan Belize’ serious about governance…”:

“The PUP promises to: strengthen the Integrity Commission so that it has the power to monitor government ministers and all elected officials in public life to ensure their ‘honorable’ exercise of duties and responsibilities; implement a government procurement process that puts all information on the Internet, thereby making it accessible to the public for their participation in the bidding and supply process of the Government; introduce legislation to regulate campaign financing; implement a fixed date for general elections; implement a transparent redistricting exercise, free from any appearance of political manipulation; and introduce an independent Elections & Boundaries Commission that is free from political interference.

“The PUP also promises to: give judges and magistrates security of tenure so that the Judiciary is more independent of the Legislature; include the social partners in the Senate in a reconstituted Public Accounts Committee; immediately sign, ratify and fully adhere to the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC); restore the autonomy of the Public Service; and revert to having Permanent Secretaries as the accounting officers of the specific ministry/ministries.”

Regardless of whether this PUP government is in danger of losing the trust of some swing voters in the Belize electorate, or if this recent land purchase controversy will be quickly sorted out, and all the political commotion will soon “blow over,” it would still be prudent for GoB, and in the best interest of the Belizean people that the last section of Plan Belize on “good governance” be given urgent attention.