Comparisons from Obama's address to Manning's words escape me, as I have none of our Prime Minister's speeches. But I can compare the cheering hundreds of thousands who braved cold weather and other inconveniences to go and take genuine joy in the election of what many believe to be a true leader, to the five thousand or so people in Woodford Square some of whom are paid to go, or get a free t-shirt (PNM, of course), or free rum to drink to celebrate putting a man to do a job which he seems incapable of doing.
They really love and respect our PM. I'm certain that any of them would be willing to sacrifice a kidney for the man should he need one.
The formula in infantile politics such as we endure in T&T is simple: give the grassroots exactly what they want and retain power at any cost without regard to what is right or wrong, what is moral or immoral. The bottom line is to stay in charge, so sell out everything in order to do so.
Such people will go to great lengths to preserve the status quo. They are the enemies of change who offer little hope for a better future for their people through the old system of patronage and greed, increasing every day.
Those who lose their piece of the pie at election time done vex. Look at comparative concession speeches in recent elections, Panday's losing rant versus McCain's endorsement in defeat. Doesn't that comparison sum it all up?
So we suffer, on and on without an end in sight, and we struggle, and we hope for leadership unforthcoming to take us to where we aspire to be.
Yet we take it because as the man say, we like it so.
1 comment:
Although I emigrated from Trinidad a long time ago, I maintain strong roots in the island. It pains and infuriates me to see the self-destruction of the Trinidad I knew.
Are there any potential intelligent leaders being groomed?
While I agree with your assessment of the mood here regarding the election and inauguration of Barack Obama, I would point out that there is a very sizeable portion of the US electorate who are like those in Trinidad that you rightly disdain. Proof of that is the millions who voted for the McCain ticket in spite of its patently unqualified half.
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