#BTColumn – Put the public in Re[public]!

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by this author are their own and do not represent the official position of the Barbados Today Inc.

by Rico J. Yearwood

‘Tis true that the Honourable Mia Amor Mottley is a formidable Prime Minister (PM) with numberless political exploits. I have overwhelming respect for her. Notwithstanding, like the rest of us, she is a human being, which means that she will blunder every now and again.

Just the other day, she reprehended our local artistes who were responsible for the Trojan Riddim video and enjoined them to apologise to the people of Barbados for their blunder. Like she said, ‘to whom much is given, much is expected.’

Undoubtedly, as PM of the people, elected by the people for the people, she must be held to a similar or even higher standard when she makes missteps. Incidentally, missteps are not always actions; missteps can be omissions.

It is against this backdrop (as the PM would say) that I am appealing to the Honourable PM, on behalf of concerned Barbadian citizens, to swallow her pride and render a formal apology to the people of Barbados for failing to educate and properly engage them in relation to the process of transitioning to a parliamentary Republic.

Absence of Public Education

During the Post Meeting of the Social Partnership Press Conference, the PM uttered the following words: “This Government has always held the perspective – consult, communicate, and where we can’t, we will not fail to govern.”

However, the Government has brought into stark relief the reality that public consultation and communication do not always translate into public education. The Government communicated with the public by telling us that Barbados will become a Republic on our 55th anniversary of Independence.

The Government indirectly consulted with the public through the Republican Status Transition Advisory Committee (RSTAC), which requested and supposedly considered recommendations from the public.

So yes, there was communication and consultation, but was there any education about Republics? The answer is a resounding ‘No’. My question to the PM is this – what good is public consultation and communication without public education?

It cannot and should not be taken for granted that all Barbadians are aware of what a Republic is. After the announcement about transitioning to a Republic was made last year during the delivery of the Throne Speech, many Barbadians contacted me to inquire about the meaning of a Republic and the implications of transitioning thereto.

To this day, I am still receiving the same inquiries from more Barbadians, especially since the PM recently announced the type of Republic Barbados will become – a parliamentary Republic. When one goes on social media, it is patent that a lot of Barbadians still are not cognisant of the benefits and disbenefits, if any, of becoming
a Republic.

It is clear that many Barbadians still have misapprehensions about Republics. What has the Government done to educate the public? Absolutely nothing.

How could Barbadians from all walks of life have meaningfully dispatched recommendations to the RSTAC when a lot of them still do not know what a Republic is?

How could the PM, in good conscience, proceed with the transition to a parliamentary Republic when a lot of Barbadians still do not understand what this means? Surely, it cannot be that the Government will educate the public about a parliamentary Republic after we become one. As the PM usually says, that would be “putting the cart before the horse.”

It was and still is incumbent on the PM, who is leading this country and the transition to the parliamentary Republic, to engage in public education on this matter. During the last Press Conference, she said, “[w]e as Barbadians understand how we do things, and typically, Barbadians respect and want that level of consultation with respect to [COVID-19] matters.”

PM, let me inform you that I have spoken to a multitude of Barbadians, and all of them have taken great umbrage at the absence of public education regarding the transition to a Republic.

Why? Because Barbadians really do understand how we do things, and they also want and would respect some measure of education from the Government with respect to becoming a parliamentary Republic.

Referendum?

The Barbadian society has been polarised by the issue as to whether a referendum should be held for the people of Barbados to determine if we should become a Republic. While some Barbadians believe that a referendum is needful, others do not hold
that view.

Many people have canvassed me for my view. First things first, we should never lose sight of the fact that the Government of Barbados is not constitutionally obligated to put a referendum to the people for the determination of any issue, irrespective of how significant or divisive the issue may be.

Generally, I support having referenda on certain issues; however, I am of the unshakeable opinion that a Government should only hold referenda if there has been prior and adequate public education on the relevant issue to be determined.

Holding a referendum without any prior or adequate public engagement or education is simply a farce and sheer waste of time. Take for example the referenda that were held in Antigua and Barbuda and Grenada in 2018 for the people of those countries to decide whether the CCJ should be their final Court of Appeal.

Both referenda failed abysmally. Less than half of the populaces of these countries turned out to vote. The voter turnout rate in Antigua and Barbuda was 33.4 per cent, and the turnout rate in Grenada was 28 per cent.

What caused this? President of the CCJ, Justice Adrian Saunders, indicated that one of the reasons for the woeful voter turnout was that enough was not done to inform and educate Caribbean people about the CCJ. Dr. Wendy C. Grenade, Senior Lecturer in Political Science at the UWI Cave Hill Campus, acknowledged that a referendum requires a well-informed citizenry for its success.

This reinforces my point about the importance of public education with regard to matters of national significance, such as transitioning to a Republic. What good is holding a referendum on the issue of becoming a Republic if there has been no public education and a large percentage of the Barbadian population still does not know what a Republic is?

Humble Request to PM

My friends (as the PM would call us), by failing to sensitise the public to a [parliamentary] Republic, the PM has done a disservice to the Barbadian citizens who do not fully understand or appreciate whither we are heading.

It is against this backdrop that I humbly ask the PM to first apologise to Barbadians for her omission and then furnish the public with ample education on this matter. That way we could finally put the public in Re[public]!

Rico J. Yearwood is the Head of the Public Law Department at CARICOM Attorneys-at-Law and co-host of the award-winning CARICOM Public Law Podcast.