Published on Wednesday, September 9, 2009

On November 25th my fellow Vincentians will vote on a referendum for Constitutional reform. In principle, I support the idea of moving from a Constitutional Monarchy to a Constitutional Republic; however, with the current political climate in Vincyland, i.e. one of tumultuous polarization; with a population distrustful of the politically bankrupt old parties, despondent enough to grasp at shadows and a politically savvy, leftist-leaning incumbent; it is mighty difficult to support this referendum with a clear conscience. The trust factor is a major ingredient to embrace full scale change; just ask President Obama.

There may be some academic and ideological bias in reforming our constitution, but is this enough to traumatize a society? Let’s suppose Vincentians vote Yes for this referendum… What happens if the Vincentian public rejects the subsequent drafting of the new changes? Does this constitute a constitutional crisis or civic upheaval in St Vincent and the Grenadines? What is the cost of changing our constitution? For instance, how much will it cost the country to modify our monetary bills and coins? And who or what do we put on our dollar bill? Ralph? Amazona Gildingii? How do we decide what or who we put on our currency... another referendum? Are we moving away from under the umbrella of the Commonwealth to move under ALBA's? Are we aligning ourselves too far to the left? It’s stated that the President would be an elected official; would he stand above partisan politics? Who do we pledge "allegiance" to if not the Queen? Are we to wean from one allegiance to suckle on another...then what is the sense in reforming our constitution?

I contend that most Vincentians are not worried about our constitution; as our constitution while not perfect has served our nation well over the years. But rather are worried about finding a job and putting food on the table for our families; sending our children to school; walking our streets without being harass by the police or molested by predators… Will this “new” constitution block politicians from practicing nepotism? Does this “new” constitution protect females from predatory politicians? Are there provisions in this “new” constitution that protects from political victimization? This referendum for all intent and purpose is an exercise in political dogma; it is not vitally important, it can wait.

So my fellow Vincentians, here is what we going to do on November 25th when we vote on the referendum; we will use the opportunity as a “teachable moment”. Since we don’t trust Arnhim Eustace’s leadership skills to govern come next election; we will give him this small victory on this referendum. Maybe a victory would invigorate his political life and put him on a path to really challenge Ralph. And since we don’t trust our Prime Minister's real intention for constitutional reform; we will take this opportunity to teach our Prime Minister some manners. Let’s return the middle finger to our Prime Minister as a lesson for all his insults and patronizing remarks he has dished out to us over the years. Let us for the sake of political manners and hubris teach our Prime Minister that that there is virtue in humility. Let us teach our Prime Minister that not every time Chavez tells him to jump; he asks how high... We do not trust you, Mr Prime Minister, with our constitution while you are sitting in Chavez’s lap.

Paul Allington

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