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Why the Coalition cannot be like the PPP

May 06, 2015 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,
Recent discussions with some colleagues of mine, all of whom can be electorally classified as part of the youth constituency, left me with a sense of foreboding as it relates to the outcome of the next general election.
In our conversations a particular theme keeps recurring. Many are doubtful, whether they decide to vote for the coalition or not, that the members of that group are any different from those in the PPP. And, their assessment is based on personal character and characteristics of many of the persons who make up the upper echelon of the PNC, the major group in the coalition.
My response to their arguments is simple and I draw from well-established social psychological theory of human behaviour, be it personal or political. The main proposition of attribution theory is that human actions have two main influences, namely, the personal which is based on inner conviction, beliefs, etc. and situational which is based on external constraints and influences.
Whenever we act it is a combination of these two factors which determines (and which therefore can explain) our actions. We always tend to attribute good actions and deeds to our own personal values and convictions, but bad actions to external and situational factors. What does all this have to do with the PPP and the Coalition?
The PPP acted and will continue to act the way it does because it is (and has been) assured of the electoral backing of its ethnic base which happens to be the largest single ethnic group in the country. Because of what Freddie Kissoon referred to as ethnic tribalism, the PPP is under no moral obligation to run the country in a way that could appeal to other sections of society; it is not even obligated to rule in the interest of its own political base. In other words, the PPP becomes a moral hazard – an organisation that has tremendous political power but is totally unconstrained by any responsibility. The cumulative effect of this moral hazard requires no enumeration here.
It is and will be the direct opposite with the coalition should they assume power. The coalition has no secure ethnic base large enough to keep it in power. It is, therefore, forced by extant circumstances to appeal not to ethnic sentiments but to nationalist ones.
A simple comparison of the campaign rhetoric of the two parties would reveal that while the PPP seems to be willing to descend into the politics of racial mobilisation, the coalition is making sure that theirs is a message of national unity. This cannot be a mere campaign strategy by the coalition if it intends to spend any time longer than one term should it win the election; it will be forced to translate those messages and ideals expressed during the campaign period into national policies and actions.
While I believe that at a personal level the members of the coalition are more cultivated than those in the PPP, and the recent behaviour of the Minister of Health is evidence enough, the key difference in determining their respective approach to governance lies principally in the different situational constraints they face.
Duane Edwards

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