Many St Lucians will certainly recall the uprising in Grenada in 1979 but how many of us understood the rationale? For the sake of refreshening our memories, we take the opportunity of bringing the story to light. Eric Gary came to power in Grenada in similar ways to George Charles and the SLP. The difference however, was that George Charles never displayed any dictatorial behaviour. He served the ordinary man the way he promised but Gary on the other hand became dictatorial and vindictive and lost touch with both the ordinary man and the pall bearers of the state. What subsequently prevailed was anarchy which caused a group of disgruntled academics to implement a coup in an effort to rid Grenada of a cancer. After successfully achieving their goal, the country was ruled for some five years by this socialist group headed by Maurice Bishop who was a people’s person.
As we are all aware, a leopard never changes its spots, when lo and behold a new Gary in the name of Bernard Cord surfaced and we are all aware of what transpired. Anarchy at the highest order.
Here in St Lucia there are emerging signs within the current administration of dictatorial behaviour and complacency that are growing steadily. The ordinary St Lucian has been quiet and reluctant to demonstrate based on their overwhelming contribution at the polls in support for the current administration but their patience is displaying signs of unhappiness. There are lessons to be learnt from these signs and government must take heed. The obvious signs are lack of employment, the skyrocketing cost of living, precipitated by inflation. The ordinary man is aware of the challenges confronting the administration but they are also aware of government’s inability in addressing the problem. The construction workers and heavy equipment owners understand government’s prerogative in making decisions to stop certain projects but not replacing those projects to counteract their loss of earnings is their concern. Three thousand construction workers have been on the breadline for eighteen months with no positive signs on the horizon for returning to their jobs.
A hungry man is an angry man but a hungry man in a heated atmosphere of inflation becomes volatile. Food prices, petrol and cooking gas, the increase in bread and bus fares are the daily reminders of the piercing pains that confront hundreds of St Lucians on a daily basis.
It does not take a genius to understand this harsh reality. These concerns are further compounded by blatant transactions within certain ministries where valuable assets of the state are disposed for no sound reasons and despite the evidence, the PM remains tight lipped as if to say we don’t owe you an explanation. This is the unacceptable behaviour that could easily break the camel’s back.
The pain for Fair Helen increases faster than we can bear.