Budget Debate ’24 and local politics

I don’t think readers of this column will be surprised to hear of my profound disappointment with the abortion of the 2024 debate and my strong condemnation of the actions of our Parliamentarians, the elected ones in particular.

There is no meeting of the House that is more followed than the Budget Debate and thus every opportunity should be utilized to tap into that opening to educate our people.

But before I get further into this matter, let me congratulate one of our outstanding local economists, Professor Justin Robinson, a regional luminary as well, for taking the time to offer public comments on the Budget. I have been moaning for years that all too few among our intellectuals seem willing to help to uplift the understanding of our people on many serious issues. Unfortunately, they leave space for those not always suitably equipped to lead public discussion on these issues. It is not just on political issues but on matters relating to a whole range of technical and developmental issues. We need to have expert opinions and guidance.

But back to the Budget Debate. The debate abortion is inexcusable since it happened before. Don’t our politicians on both sides learn from historical experience? Or is it that their rivalry comes before all else? It matters not who points fingers at whom, both sides are to blame. As the saying goes, “A plague on both your houses”.

As a result, we were deprived of the opportunity to hear the majority of government Ministers outline their plans in the Budget and their so-called “Shadows” on the other side present alternative views. In addition, all elected representatives have a sacred responsibility to report to their constituents on such an occasion. The collusion of both parties, intended or not, deserves strong public condemnation. In my simple view, it further emphasizes how this insistence on following the two-party system inherited from the colonial Westminster model is proving more and more futile in our context.

The Budget process continues to show up the irrelevance of the current system and the need for decolonization. It was heartening to hear of a former Appeals Court Judge, speaking at the opening of the new term of the Eastern Caribbean law term call for an aspect of decolonization, the move away from the British Privy Council, to be operationalized.

There were a number of other useless products of colonialism on show during the sitting on the Debate. For instance, there are the colonial trappings on show at every opening of Parliament – the “Royal salute” for instance, different to the salute to our elected Prime Minister, and the odious practice of referring to Vincentian people who take the time to attend sittings of the House, as being in the “Strangers’ Gallery”. Are we “strangers” in our own House? I find this deeply offensive.

It again highlights the need for URGENT ACTION on the decolonization process. SVG was once seen as a beacon in the Caribbean for our strong stance on the issue. But it seems that we have more bark than bite. Other Caribbean countries have moved to act while we continue to offer lame excuses.

One outstanding example of this continues to be on the Reparations issue. SVG was one of the “opening bowlers”, to use a cricket analogy, for the regional team on this issue, but it appears that the shine has come off our “new ball”. We were out front on the “Big Ticket” issue, the regional launch of the Caribbean Reparations Committee. We said the right things and raised many hopes but what has happened locally since then? Where is the programmatic action?

While I lay responsibility at the feet of the Government, responsibility goes further. Is the Opposition on board or not, willing to let the Government lapse and then attempt to gain political capital from this? Reparations cannot be a victim of our divisive political system. Can the hand-picked new Committee, without a genuine base, do what even the undoubted commitment of our PM could not accomplish?

Where is public education on this vital issue, still misunderstood by so many of our people? We have not even been able to roll out a simple education programme for primary and pre-schools, much more at other levels of our education system. And, has any of our two parties even attempted inner-party education on this vital issue?

It is more than time to reflect, not to bristle at criticisms, but to use them to improve performance. The Government certainly has an impressive economic record at the macro-level but seems unable to translate this at the levels where it matters most, the working people. This is in spite of those programmes directly benefiting the same people. The commitment to local government seems to have gone out of the window but there is no alternative, certainly not hand-picked committees. It is not enough to rubbish an apparently clueless Opposition. Some deep soul-searching is necessary.

• Renwick Rose is a community activist and social commentator.