Submitted by Sunshine Sunny Shine
The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenges and controversy – Martin Luther King
It would be interesting to know the ultimate measure of Freundel Stuart because we certainly cannot apply the above quote to his ability to lead or demonstrate conduct that instils a sense of confidence and well-being. To show yourself approved to deal with challenges efficiently and calm the fears of many in times of controversy and uncertainty is certainly not an attribute of Stuart’s arsenal of mind boggling justifications on many an issue of governance, as it is his position to condone and overlook obvious wrong doing with a superfluity of words. His is a behaviour that interprets according to Stuart, for the Stuart, as to only help he, the Stuart.
So here we are at yet another fiasco that the Freundel pretends that he does not understand when he knows full well why the public is so pissed at him. It is another case of the Fruendel leading according to the logic of the Fruendel. That logic says that a new $750,000 Mercedes S-Class was in estimates and that the purchasing of such a car is for the travelling commitments of the Prime Minister of Barbados. According to him, this must be done regardless of harsh economic times, regardless of the belt-tightening request or telling the public that the jockey is too heavy for the horse, and irrespective of the undeniable sufferings of many people made so by measures imposed by his administration.
His is thinking that says to serve in the ‘public’s interest’ is more important than the public’s concern. So the political class should not be subject to certain austerities as it is their duty to function unrestricted and without pressure if they are to fulfil their duties to the best of their abilities.
To him, the Prime Minister is a leader of a country, and like all other world leaders, who drive around in style and comfort that it is also his right of entitlement to be driven around in the same. After all, the opposition had proposed it, he is just honouring it, and it is not his car, according to Stuart’s logic of things.
He would never stop to think, base on what is happening in Barbados and how people views his leadership, to show the people that if he asks them to tighten their belts that he and his administration will tighten theirs as well. His is a logic that says the economy is only good to restore the 10 percent that parliamentarians give up but not good enough to give civil servants a modest increase in salary after so many years of suffering under a wage freeze. That political interests must be separate from societal concerns; so, the purchasing of a $750,000 S-Class Mercedes is just as important as spending over 7 million on the one-year independence celebrations in 2016 in spite of the garbage collection problem the island faced in that year,
At the end of the day, the logic of the Stuart is certain to do the right thing according to the interpretation of the Stuart. So all opposing views are wrong, even if his behaviour in certain things may appear immoral and questionable. He is the Stuart, and he operates according to the values and principles that have made him who he is even if it means being looked upon as the most disliked Prime Minister in the history of Barbados politics.
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