By Dr Selwyn R. Cudjoe
January 30, 2023
I would like to congratulate Christine Kangaloo on being elected to the highest office in the land. Whatever her strengths and/or weaknesses, she now represents all Trinbagonians and so we must pledge our allegiance to her. As she said in her acceptance speech: “Now that the election is over, I look forward to serving our country in the only way I know how – with love for all and an unwavering faith in the innate goodness of our people .”
However, we must ensure that the process to elect our presidents is more democratic and inclusive, so that we choose the best person for the job. We must ask how much we have learned after 47 years of Republican history and what we need to do to improve the selection process.
First, more people should be allowed to participate in the process of electing a president. As it stands, a large number of our citizens have no role in electing our president. As candidates are nominated by political parties, the public is given little time to discuss the candidates’ strengths and weaknesses. In the last act of this political drama, the public had about ten days to discuss the choices they were presented with.
Currently, the parties (PNM and KBB) are responsible for proposing candidates for the presidency. I am not sure that the elections of these two parties express the sentiments of the nation. In 2020, 685,297 or 58.04 percent of an electorate of 1,134,135 people voted. PNM and UNC received 322,250 and 309,188 votes respectively. Only 13,062 votes separated the parties.
Based on these figures, each party represented about 28 percent of the population. So how do we make sure that the other 42 percent of the population is given a chance to participate in the election of the president?
Therefore, we must create a mechanism where the general public, outside of political parties, will be able to influence the choice of these candidates. Whatever we do, it is important that we encourage the wider public (ie the 42 per cent of the electorate who did not vote and party opponents) to participate in the process.
Second, as far as possible, we must resist the tendency to elect overtly partisan politicians. Whatever, they may say, they cannot but be influenced by their previous political commitments. It is hard to believe that someone who once openly declared that he will promote the gospel of PNM throughout the length and breadth of the country can now be righteous and upright.
The newly elected President Kangaloo has stated that “impartiality has been [my] historic and it will continue to be [my] The guiding principle in [my] relations with the government, the opposition and the people of Trinidad and Tobago”. It is even more surprising when she says: “I can say, without anyone being able to contradict me, that I have never done anything on a party basis.”
It would have been more commendable – and I suspect more true – if she had said: “Despite my partisan past, I will endeavor to be impartial in my dealings with the Government and the Opposition, as my present position requires “. Experience suggests that if one starts with a falsehood, one is more likely to continue down that path. The president-elect should be more careful with her words.
Third. Over the years we have gone from presidents who were more broadly educated (in academics and work experience) to those who were more narrowly specialized. Five of our seven presidents have been lawyers. Ellis Clarke, our first president, was a lawyer and a Roman Catholic; Noor Mohammed Hassanali was a Supreme Court judge and a Muslim; Arthur NR Robinson was an economist and a practical politician; George Richards was a chemical engineer; Anthony Carmona was an international judge and a Roman Catholic; Paula-Mae Weeks was a retired Court of Appeal judge and an Anglican; Christine Kangaloo, former president of the Senate, is a lawyer and a Presbyterian.
While knowledge of the law can be helpful in understanding the mechanics of the office, it should not be a primary criterion in determining a president’s qualifications. The president of the country should understand the historical development of the country and, where possible, try to fill the missing political, social, cultural and religious gaps of the society.
Fourthly. We cannot boast of being a country where every faith and race finds an equal place when, at this present moment, there is little visibility of the largest religious group, the Hindus, at the highest levels of government.
The fifth. One could accuse PNM of being narrowly partisan and somewhat nepotistic in electing the president. However, the KBB was even more irresponsible in nominating a candidate who appears to be too intemperate for a position that essentially requires someone to unite the nation. The selection of Israel Khan, SC, spoke ill of the judgment of the Leader of the Opposition.
Sixth. The nation needs leaders to bind society together. To achieve this goal, a leader must weave the many ethnic and cultural strands of society into a seamless fabric. He/she must possess humility, civic knowledge and statecraft to achieve this goal.
People make a constitution; a constitution does not make a people. Not even a lawyer is needed to understand the history of a society in its countless dimensions. That is why we must widen the net of candidates we consider and seek the views of all our citizens when we elect our republic’s highest official.
