Est.2007

Barbados Underground

Bringing News and Opinions to the People

, ,

Barbados Underground Ask Prime Minister Owen Arthur The Big Question~Will You Call General Elections Before Or After Christmas?

← Back

Your message to the BLOGMASTER was sent

CONTACT THE BLOGMASTER ONLY

bp42987.jpg

Source: Nation

Seems that Prime Minister Owen Arthur is running out of timing options, the longer he waits before calling General Elections. The big question is whether he will make the call before or after Christmas; at this juncture, does it really matter. The Opposition Democratic Labour Party should have its election machinery well geared.   Now that Crop Over is out of the way speculation will surface once more.  BU will not speculate on the date; however, it is evident that the longer Prime Minister Arthur waits, the greater opportunity the Democratic Labour Party and its beleaguered leader David Thompson will have to right the ship.

This election will prove to be very interesting for a number of reasons.  At the top of the list is David Thompson fully knowing that if he loses, it will spell the end of his political aspirations to be Prime Minister of Barbados.

Related Stories

BU Previews Upcoming Elections in Barbados: Will It Be An Election About Leadership, Economic Issues or Both?

Discover more from Barbados Underground

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

16 responses to “Barbados Underground Ask Prime Minister Owen Arthur The Big Question~Will You Call General Elections Before Or After Christmas?”

  1. Adrian Loveridge Avatar
    Adrian Loveridge

    If I heard correctly, the electoral turn-out for the last General Election was the lowest in 25 years. Around 50 something per cent.
    Again, subject to correction it has been as high as 81%.

    How do ‘we’ get more people to exercise their right and vote?

  2. Idealist Avatar
    Idealist

    Maybe, come up with policies which inspire hope and enthusiasm to the disillusioned 30%.

    Dispel this newly emerged elitist political class mentality.
    Re-engage and re-enfranchise the ordinary Bajan to make them feel their voice is being heard, understood and obeyed.

    Ah, wish it were so. Where are inspired leaders to come from? Certainly not the politics of inclusion.

    So, it’s back to corned beef and biscuits and a below 50% turnout.

  3. David Avatar
    David

    Adrian Loveridge~you are right of course. We believe that the cynicism for this election by the population would have deteriorated compared to last time around. What it will take is anyone’s guess. What we know is a low turn-out will favor the BLP. Obviously Arthur knows this and feels no hurry to call elections.

  4. Roger Rabbitt Avatar
    Roger Rabbitt

    With the current crop of MPs and nothing of substance in the foreseeable future cynicism will continue to be rampant. No one on the government side inspires any confidence and that is sad.
    When we look at the this parliament is there anything outstanding that we can point to and say that minister X or Y was instrumental in accomplishing? NOTHING.
    At least there seem to be hope however little coming from the other side. What we do know about the DLP is that there are very few unknowns in their line-up as compared to the BLP when they assumed office some thirteen years ago.
    Ppl have to be motivated in order to vote and it is the best interest of the BLP to frustrate the electorate causing them not to vote.
    The DLP has a hard task in cinvincing the said electorate to exercise their right.

  5. notesfromthemargin Avatar
    notesfromthemargin

    Typically you see a higher turn out when people have decided to change a government. I think the highest turn out on record was the last time the BLP was thrown out in 1981.

    If people don’t want to change or don’t see a reasonable alternative, you tend to see what are in effect “abstentions”

    I think it was Tom Adams who was reputed to have said that the people don’t vote an opposition in, they vote a government out.

    I’m curious to see what the result of this next election will be.

  6. Wishing in Vain Avatar
    Wishing in Vain

    The PM finds himself between a rock and a hard place with his timing of the elections, early thoughts of calling one right after CWC got blown out of the water with a dreadful hosting of CWC but this should not have prevented him from making the call as his senior minister Noless Lynch said that it was our finest hour obviously Lynch and Owing are not seeing eye to eye on the success as Lynch would state or utter failure as Owing would state CWC was.
    Then we have the issues with corruption and stealing and moraless behaviour of those within his cabinet where he maybe waiting for scandals to fade away before carrying them into an election with so many scandals fresh in the memory of the electorate such as GEMS / JAWS, $ 300 million prison, the mega costing bath, the slot machine deal with Owing and Nicholls,the change of use of lands for a fee to Owing and company, the Glyne Clarke land use issue, the issue of non nationals taking control of our island and erecting barriers to our free movement, the issue of non national breaking the law and employing Chinese workers but not being fined as most others would have been done, like the paid arrangement between Owing and Pemberton for favours to be granted at a price but the public got charged up on the issue and set the cat among the pigeons, or the non national who breaks the law by erecting a chain across the road but then gets selected as our counsel to Gremany none other than Mrs Sixt from Queens Fort drive, the flyovers and many many others.
    I have news for him, did he not get the message of cropover this year not a singlel Calypso said a single good word about he, Mottley, Lynch, Clarke, Marshall, Wood, Eastmond not one of them in his cabinet got away without attack in calypso, if this alone is any indication as to extent of peoples anger at this adminstration they will be lucky to return even a single seat in the house, people are so annoyed and hurt by this bunch for raping this country that they want the opportunity to rebel and speak with their X.
    Never before have a group of politicians willfully set about to rape the treasury to this extent as these bastards have done and they have the gall to tell people they need another 5 years, to do what rape more ?
    It seems to me any number can play but his worry ought not to be the timing but moreso cleaning out the evidence of his stealing from his office draws.
    The timing is no longer an issue here the result will be the same, defeat now or six months down the line the outcome will be the same, so realistically lets have him call the elections and return this nation to a real and working democracy free of this level of corruption.

  7. realist Avatar
    realist

    Something castotrophic will have to happen between now and when for the people to vote out the BLP. They are too much like mice and the country needs lions.

  8. Wishing in Vain Avatar
    Wishing in Vain

    We need to see a change sooner rather than later, not sure how much more rape the treasury can handle before going bust.

  9. Adrian Loveridge Avatar
    Adrian Loveridge

    David…

    Somewhere around 12 seats won in the last General Election with a majority of less than 150 seats.

    The difference between a 50 something per cent turn-out and the 81 per cent you mention must be the key to good governance.
    Either a more effective opposition or an opposition with 13 or 14 seats.
    What do you think?

  10. Adrian Avatar
    Adrian

    Sorry David what is an effective opposition with 13 or 14 seats, when there is no seperation of powers (all concentrated in the PM and the cabinet) and a first past the post electorial system that declares the winner and awards the spoils no matter if by one vote or one seat. It is and has been pure nonsense, this concept of an opposition in our system of government, they have never been able to stop legislation, stop erronious policy etc. All that any opposition can say is….well we voted no. Ponder a little while on why Errol Barrow had very little interest in being the opposition Leader.

  11. buiz Avatar
    buiz

    I thnk that Mr Arthur is not going to call election before christmas for two reasons, one being, that he is either buying himself time to formulate what i call a “maricle policy” that would as a result encourage “I want” bajans to vote in favor of the party or two being, that he himself realised the mess which he has created, so by not calling election A.S.A.P, it gives the opposition time to hole the majority. But never the less, i think it is time fa a change.

  12. Wishing in Vain Avatar
    Wishing in Vain

    He may not want to call it until the very latest time either way his goose appears to be cooked fueled by his own corrupt acts and permitting others in his camp doing the same.

  13. David Avatar
    David

    Adrian~we understand your position and we agree that some amendment is sorely needed to our system of government. However we are of the view that Barbadians who are the ones that must force the change are not yet ready to do so. Barbadians are attached to the idea that the current system has worked well over the years. Barbadians as they did with WI cricket believe that politicians of character will continue to emerge and save the day. The famous three blind mice is a classic case in point. Barbadians have now attracted the reputation as being reactive so until there is a political fall-out of mega proportions lets keep on doing what you doing Sammy.

  14. Roger Rabbitt Avatar
    Roger Rabbitt

    David
    “THe famous three blind mice is a classic case in point”
    ******************************************************************
    What do you mean? Are you saying that the then three blind mice were an effective opposition? Not true at all.
    The Nation newspaper took up the fight on behalf of the opposition and some two years later, Richie Haynes and three others broke away from the Dems to form the NDP.
    It is misleading to say that three men took the fight to the then government. They did not save the day at all. The Nation was really the “party” that fought the gov’t.

  15. David Avatar
    David

    Roger Rabbitt~we agree that the Opposition at the time had help but we also believe that they attracted that help because of the energy and articulation of the issues which they brought to the job. Whether we agree or not the public perception then and up to know suggests that the public was satisfied with their “leadership” while in Opposition.

  16. Wishing in Vain Avatar
    Wishing in Vain

    I know that I am Wishing in Vain on this one but it is a sincere wish that I would love to see fufilled and carried out and that is that this gang are taken before the law courts of this island and charged for corruption, I would be willing to lay the charges before them without hesitation.
    These crooks have raped this country to such an extent that it is hard to believe or trust anything that they say or do.
    We need to seriously consider our next vote and where are going with this gang of bastards.
    Barbados cannot afford much more of them because at this rate they will break the treasury.
    When one considers that Owings financiers are the likes of Rausing, Smith, Paynter, Smurfitt,Weatherhead, Bjerkham, his bank account is sitting pretty as ever so why then still want to rob from us the taxpayers ?

The blogmaster invites you to join the discussion.

Trending

Discover more from Barbados Underground

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading