The resignation of Owen Arthur from from the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) should make Barbadians pause for several reasons. The incapacity of a former Prime Minister of fourteen years to carve out an effective role to serve his political party in the twilight of his career leaves a sour taste. If our leaders are unable to find ways to resolve conflict to the greater good of country what message does it send to the general population?
BU hesitates to join those who believe that with the exit of Arthur it leaves a clear path to unchallenged leadership for Mia Mottley. The decision by Arthur to resign from the party BUT continue to sit in parliament as an independent may yet prove to be a bane for Mottley. Unshackled from the political party that made him, he has created the opportunity to demonstrate in his post-resignation contributions to parliament why he believes the BLP has drifted from its course. For him not to record for the benefit of Hansard and to share his knowledge as a former prime minister with the people of Barbados will be a cheat on his legacy, a porakey parliament notwithstanding.
BU is of the view Arthur sincerely believes Mottley is not made of the stuff required to be a prime minister. He has stated it publicly at a press conference held at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill in 2009. And many of his statements since has demonstrated he has not shifted his position. When Mottley was selected as opposition leader after the last general election was Arthur present in the room?
Arthur is known for his clear and colourful language when expressing himself, he has been unusually vague about what he finds so distressing about Mottley’s leadership shortcomings. Many speculate that Arthur is not enamoured by Mottley’s lifestyle and the attendant issues. Defamation laws may have something to do with his reluctance to be forthright and lucid on the matter, but his constant snipping at the heels of Mottley has backfired. Mottley took a gamble by organizing a protest walk not knowing the level of support she was likely to attract from the parliamentary group AND the public. The strong show of support from the BLP parliamentary group and the public must have caused the volte-face we witnessed today. Arthur will have a lot of explaining to do in the coming days, weeks … why would a former prime minister and elder of a political party resign from his party rather than use his influence within the party to force change.
As an independent Arthur may decide to frontally challenge contributions made by the BLP and in the process give the Arthur faction that remains of Payne, Marshall and Symmonds the bravado to continue to show dissent under Mottley’s leadership. The approach by this lot will have to be monitored closely in the coming weeks. Say what you want Arthur is not a fool, if he and cohorts believe Mottley is not qualified to lead Barbados, the question BU must ask is have they given up the fight to deny her?
What is distressing about what is playing out in Barbados today – the government continues to struggle managing the economy with all economic and social indicators trending in the wrong direction. Instead of a country fully mobilized to confront the challenges ahead, we continue to be embroiled in partisan political dribble. Listen to the disingenuous quotes in the news today from Minister Donville Inniss and Prime Minister Freundel Stuart reacting to Arthur’s resignation, when just a few months ago they were braying on the political platforms a strong belief that Lucifer had reincarnated as Arthur himself.
Mia Mottley you still have work to do if you want to be the first female prime minister of Barbados.
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