Arthur: A fearless patriot

Late Prime Minister Owen Arthur is being described by the man who succeeded him as Member of Parliament for St Peter Colin Jordan as a visionary who was fearless but not reckless.

Jordan, who is in charge of the State Funeral arrangements for Arthur who died this morning at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH), said in his tribute that Barbados has lost one of its finest products.

The tribute on behalf of the people of St Peter, the constituency where Arthur served for a record 34 unbroken years, identified the former Prime Minister as an example of a person who could rise from poor or working class beginnings to any height.

“He knew what he wanted for Barbados and he had a roadmap for how to get there. Whether it was 30,000 jobs for Barbadians or expanding and deepening Caribbean integration, or positioning Barbados on the world stage, he had a plan and was able to execute,” Jordan stated.

The St Peter MP who is also Minister of Labour and Social Partnership Relations, noted that the title Professor of Practice conferred on his predecessor by the University of the West Indies (UWI) was most appropriate.

“He was a practitioner. He enjoyed using his deep knowledge of economics and translating it to the practical realities of the everyday lives of ordinary people. He mastered the ability to connect the dots,” he stated.

“He was fearless. Whether it was standing up to the United States of America on the matter of Ship Rider or taking on the OECD on tax policy. Even in taking on powerful forces here in Barbados he was fearless though not reckless. He was not afraid of the cut and thrust of politics and seemed to revel in it,” Jordan added.

The St Peter MP noted that Arthur understood the role of education in the uplifting of people.

“He knew what it had done for him and he had seen what it had done for so many others. He worked hard to ensure that it was not only available, but accessible,” Minister Jordan declared.

“He was inclusive. He recognized the size of our country and the limits of its resources. He was determined to move beyond party politics and include the best and most suitable talent available in the development of the country,” he continued.

Jordan said the former Prime Minister was a man of conviction.

“I choose to use this term rather than to use stubborn, even though some may believe that stubborn is more appropriate. When convinced of the rightness of a position, it often seemed there was no one on earth and no team of wild horses that could get him to change his mind. He stood his ground regardless of the volume of voices to the contrary,” he said.

Jordan also remembered Arthur as a straight talker in the lineage of former St. Peter MPs before him such as JTC Ramsey and Sir Frank Walcott.

“Mr. Arthur had many terms and sayings. Two that are particularly important to me and to the people of St. Peter are “Go for the gold” and “Face it and fix it,” he noted.

Jordan said the world and the region have lost a great man.

“Barbados has lost one of its finest products. St. Peter has lost a beloved son of the soil; one who loved and cared for us, represented us well, and worked hard for our development,” he pointed out.

“For the residents of St. Peter, Professor, the Right Honourable Owen Seymour Arthur, was first and foremost one of us. He was Owen Arthur, coming from the middle of the parish, the belly of the constituency. He was determined to demonstrate to the world that it is possible to be poor and from the working class and, by dint of hard work and tenacity, rise to any height,” Jordan observed.

He said Arthur was proud of his roots at Rose Hill, his primary schooling at All Saints Boys School and his secondary school education at the Coleridge and Parry School.

“There were other people and educational institutions outside of St. Peter, but for him, St. Peter was a special place. One of the last things he told me (and I know that he wants this to be remembered) is that he is the only Prime Minister who has represented the constituency of his birth in Parliament. He was proud to have represented us for 34 unbroken years,” recalled Jordan.

“St. Peter has always been proud of him. There are many stories about who was meant to be the candidate of the Barbados Labour Party in the first 1984 by-election to replace then Speaker of the House of Assembly and our MP Burton Hinds. Our elders are fond of sharing that they stood up to the powers that be and said, “don’t bring anybody. We have a man – Owen Arthur.” The rest, as they say, is history.”

The St Peter parliamentarian also recalled his predecessor as a teacher.

“Many can remember the joy of listening to budget replies and later, budget speeches, and actually understanding what was being said. He gave advice or make suggestions for how you could improve. He enjoyed seeing people develop. He taught me much of what I know about politics,’ added Jordan.

“St. Peter celebrated our beloved elder statesman in February at our We Gatherin’ commencement service where he read a lesson and again when Professor Sir Hilary Beckles delivered a superb lecture under the topic From Cuffee to Owen. Listening to Mr. Arthur tell his personal story, I recognized that he was one of a long line of patriots from St. Peter who struggled against oppressive forces and reached the top. In many ways he represented the pinnacle of that struggle and I wanted us to celebrate that,” he declared in his tribute today.

“The people of St. Peter express sincere condolences to his wife Julie, his daughters Sabrina and Leah, his granddaughter, siblings, nieces and nephews and many cousins on the passing of Professor, the Right Honourable Owen Seymour Arthur. We pray that God will comfort you at this time of significant loss,” Jordan stated.

Jordan and his team are expected to meet tomorrow to start discussing arrangements for the State Funeral.
emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb