EDITORIAL: Civic responsibilities and Election Day

Published in the Jamaica Gleaner: Thursday | August 30, 2007

The glitches reported in Tuesday's elections by members of the security forces and Election Day workers relatively minor, have again highlighted some areas that need to be addressed by citizens themselves as well as by the Electoral Office of Jamaica (EOJ).

We are showing signs increasingly in this country of persons folding their hands expecting that others will do for them what they can and should be doing for themselves. We have a long history of social intervention by governments in various areas of our lives but people also have a responsibility to themselves. If they want to exercise their franchise, they should check well ahead of Election Day to ascertain that their names are properly listed and for the constituencies in which they were enumerated or reverified.

While the EOJ is expected to be efficient in its administration of the elections machinery, we owe it to ourselves to assumethat mistakes can be made. In the case of members of the security forces who are liable to be transferred periodically, it is even more important for them to check and recheck that they are able to exercise their franchise where they are relocated.

Some of the complaints from persons who were unable to vote indicate misunderstanding as to where they would be able to vote. It is significant that more complaints were reported by police personnel than soldiers - the Jamaica Defence Force administrators seemingly anticipating the glitches and taking pre-emptive action. And with some changes in the persons hired to work as Election Day personnel, an efficient system that allows quick changes to the list must also be in place.Perhaps, too, the EOJ needs to revisit its own communications policies to ascertain whether they are reaching target audiences in the way intended.

Already, correspondence sent to us for publication have complaints from people claiming surprise at not seeing their names on the list despite being reverified. There may be some mischief makers among the complainants but no doubt some genuine errors as well. We hope and trust that any glitches on Monday will be so minuscule as not to provide any ground for contesting the results of the election on the basis of maladministration.

And as the political parties enter the home stretch in their campaigning, it is imperative that they recommit themselves to adhering to the Joint Agreement and Declaration on Political Conduct. With some of the candidates being locked in tight contests, the temptation to engage in acts of intimidation and violence will increase. With no one wanting to cede any ground at this critical juncture, retaliation and revenge would not be far behind.

Our party leaders and their close operatives should bear in mind that whoever emerges victorious on Monday, they will still require the cooperation of a significant part of the population who do not share their political outlook to be able to govern. Our leaders need to re-engagewith the people as to their individual responsibilities, even while seeking to ensure that adequate systems are in place for the conduct of a free and fair election.

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