A fist fight and photo finish: Who will win the next Election?

After a Jarring discussion late last week with a reporter, I took an impromptu to decision not to say anything more until after the election, then I would, "release the Kraken" as some would have it, but after reading an article just now and watching the JLP Mass rally in Half Way Tree, I remain resolute in adding to pool of knowledge for this election.

So far what has happened?

 An election has been called by the Prime Minister for the 25th of February, a mere 3 days away. Both parties have responded and have starting campaigning heavily. The PNP has set a course to continue to "step up the Progress Jeep", while the JLP have sent out a message for Jamaicans to "Hop unto the Prosperity Train", whose course is to take Jamaica from poverty to prosperity. The JLP released a some what controversial 10 point plan, the hot topic from the plan is raising the effective income tax threshold to $1.5 million. The Prime Mister has gone on to label the 10 point plan as a "10 point con", the minister of Finance has called its components "a three card trick". In response to the con statement the JLP leader called the two "the biggest con artists Jamaica has ever seen". The result of that was a probe into the JLP leader's house at which he eventually published the highly sensitive data to the public and as a result of him not wanting to apologize for a political blow to the prime minister the nation is left with no political debates. The only thing we have to rely on are two recently released manifestos, The PNP's vague regurgitation of the 2011 manifesto while the JLP's proposes a path that may not appear to be so possible, though it goes into much more details than the PNP's.

But where does this election stand three days out? Is it clear who the winner will be?

I will leave with you a lesson I learned from my own election attempt and the advice I will use if one day I enter the political arena. That is, elections are won on the day, don't worry about  your die-hearted supporters they will always be there, hence the meaning of die hearted. The focus of the few days leading up to an election is encouraging and convincing the undecided and the disengaged to vote for one reason or the other.

  If history prevails it will a landslide victory for the ruling party but the traction and the appeal of the JLP is not to be undone. The JLP has run a clean campaign so far and have not resorted to the smear tactics that the PNP has resorted to.  The difference in my view is leadership. In Trinidad, former prime minister Kamla Persuad-Bissessar took the same approach as her Jamaican counterpart and she paid for it.

For any undecided voter reading this article, if you can vote on election day ,please vote. But vote wisely, family tradition is in the past, it has no bearing on your future unless you allow it.

One party provides a leader who you can see appears to be the leader while the other appears to be a figure head, mind you if you knew what i knew you would have a great understanding that both are figure heads, but at least one of them shows you that He can be a leader.




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