NNP’s stage-five cancerous anti-democratic tumor
IF the New National Party in Grenada was some community club in the back of Munich, what is happening with it would have been awkwardly comical and made for a good rum shop laugh.
But it, being a supposedly serious political party, seeking to govern a nation again – makes it more like tragicomedy. It is simply dangerous.
The party has never been well known for its embrace of internal democracy – but its long serving political leader and former Prime Minister Dr Keith Mitchell has spent the last two years – making his previous stint look like a Happy Hill R.C harvest.
This
is now the real deal; and this is the real him.
The
party’s state has nothing to do with the ambitions of Emmalin Pierre, Peter
David, Dwight Horsford –or anyone else who rightfully wants to dream.
It
has everything to do with a man, who has suffered such a psychological blow from his
defeat at the hands of what he himself called “little children” – that one of
his few fantasies, even in his golden age, is to become Prime Minister again.
50
Cent once rapped: Get Rich or Die Trying. Doc’s version is – Get Power Again and
‘Dye’ While Trying.
The
former Prime Minister has crippled or dismantled every organization in the
party since he was booted out of San Souci; he is hardly on speaking terms with
its last elected chairman Oliver Joseph and its general secretary Roland Bhola –
simply because they have dared speak about having a long overdue convention
before July.
That won’t happen – not because the executive has not yet set a date – as both he and Pierre have lied in public interviews - but because simply put, he is not ready yet. He is busy going around the country trying to change properly registered delegates – to guarantee he will still have his way.
When he says the party must organize itself first before a convention – read that to mean – he must finish changing the delegates. (Never mind the party’s constitution which he has thrown away that says “Shall” hold a convention every year without putting any conditions on it).
Every week he delays, further exposes both his paranoia and his weakness. The emperor knows, as I write, he has no clothes. But he is busy trying to find them and put them on.
And he is very experienced at that. Doc has been at it for a long time, since 1984-85 when he was not even the leader.
How do I know?
Back then I was supposed to be the youngest delegate, representing PD Number 2 in Munich along with Shirley McMillan.
I was working as the young editor of The National newspaper – the party’s organ – after George Brizan had pulled me out from my temporary teaching job on a Friday afternoon to come take charge of the organ the next Monday morning.
So, I had access to the people at the party office – who told me that he had ordered my name scratched out because I was one of Brizan’s boys.
Larry Joseph, a genuine democrat, and a man who gave him his loyalty was there those times. But ‘Doc’ doesn’t talk to him anymore, because Sir Lawrence dared suggest letting democracy reign for once - in their old party.
In the last few weeks, we have been having the wrong discussion about NNP. At its core it does not face a leadership problem. It faces a democracy crisis – one that manifests itself in a leader, inspite of polls suggesting otherwise – determined to stay by any means necessary.
Emmalin Pierre’s leadership fantasies end where Dr Mitchell’s selfish ego begins. She may become his plan G, after Akima Paul, who was his plan D, Derek Sylvester his plan E and Dwight Horsford his plan F –either fell out of his plans - or saw through him – and refused to bite the poisoned apple he fed Elvin Nimrod, and in latter days Peter David.
Dr Keith Mitchell has always been – and remains his own Plan A, B and C.
Pierre is not running for any leadership right now – the news reports have been wrong. The St Andrew’s South MP herself says it – she will only take the punt “when there is a vacancy.” Pierre knows there is not one right now; she is not even sure when there will be one. Keith Mitchell has told his people, nobody challenges him unless there is a vacancy – and he has proudly declared, that there is none.
Appreciating that the “whole truth” has never been his strong suite, the former Prime Minister, inappropriately used Winston Whyte’s funeral to make his point about “challenges.”
Whatever you think about Doc and this situation, he is being true to form. Two days after the last election, he told me – boldly to my face - the NNP belongs to him and Gregory Bowen –and nothing will change unless “they” (truthfully him) decide.
Sadly, Emmalin Pierre is the latest political hostage he is using to buy time.
Remember Doc is same man who sent a committee, headed by Bowen, to Peter David a few months ago to demand that he cease “campaigning” – or supposedly, I guess, face disciplinary action.
Their reason then? Well, the race for leadership has not yet started, and other people might be interested – so wait until others declare.
Never mind Emmaline has “semi” declared. The MP, who sometimes herself sets the agenda, is attending every single meeting the party is currently having around the country. David, sometimes on her own insistence according to inside party sources, has not been invited to any meeting outside of the parish of St George’s.
Maybe it is an acknowledgment that he is too popular in St Andrew’s and St Patrick’s to risk it.
At some point soon, the likes of Oliver Joseph (the chairman), and Roland Bhola (the general secretary), Peter David (the assistant general secretary) – must decide what they are willing to do about this anti democrat cancer that’s at stage five in the NNP.
I guess it depends how they want history to regard them.
The political leader has dismantled every half-working institution in the party. He has set up what he called Leads and Deputy Leads in every constituency and demanded that they report directly to him – not General Secretary Bhola.
For practical purposes he has fired Bhola. Maybe to put it nicely – he has been neutered.
Dr Mitchel has made in clear that there is a yearning for “the old NNP” – whatever that means. Emphasizing the point, he has brought back Ann Antoine as “a lead” in south – even after not reportedly breaking a word with her for more than a decade.
The former Prime Minister finally becoming the Mick Jagger of Grenadian politics – the senior citizen putting his old band back together and getting ready for a “greatest hits” album.
Only last week he was at practice – dancing to a recent campaign song of his - “Never Get Weary Yet.”
A man who is planning on leaving soon will not be so eager to making the point about “staying power” as the song depicts.
His
now illegal and unconstitutional executive is filled with people mostly
suffering from battered woman syndrome. They all know their old lover is bad
for them; they grumble about it; but afraid to do anything about it.
With his own polls (he hid from his people before the elections) showing his
leadership was a drag on the party – in another maneuver to buy time, the then
Prime Minister asked then party Chairman Anthony Boatswain to meet with people
interested in potential party leadership.
Bowen, David and Pierre attended. Boatswain alluded to the development in an interview. He was “pulled over the coals” afterwards by the very man who set it up.
Doc was never serious. It was just one of those attempts to buy time. And he is doing it again.
Pierre, in true fashion (in honor of her boss I guess) – earlier this year told a ‘To The Point’ interview on GBN that she had never expressed interest in any leadership. (That’s Ok if you believe Doc’s story that he never said he was going).
But the late Basdeo Panday of Trinidad and Tobago said it best – politics has a morality of its own.
In full disclosure – the “One for the Road” concept – was sold to him by me – but that was just half of the message. He was supposed to use the campaign to outline a detailed plan for transition. He bluntly refused repeatedly to do the second part. (Wait to hear all the excuses he gave in my forthcoming book).
For years I have told everyone who would listen, that Doc is the leader for life. And in his old age, he has now turned also into a political arsonist – ready to burn his own house down if he can’t have his way.
