Why I was not able to vote

ALTHOUGH I am on the current voters’ list, have a recent Electoral Registration Identification Card, and confirmed that my name was registered at a nearby polling station, I was not able to vote. My problem had nothing to do with the Electoral Commission of Jamaica … they did a fantastic job planning, organising, and executing this election. My problem was that I was not given any choices.

People vote for many reasons. They vote because it is their right, and some feel that it’s their duty to do so. Many have suffered, sacrificed, and died for us to be able to exercise our right to elect the people who manage our country, whether at the local or national level. Voting makes politicians know that the people who gave them the ‘power’ can take it away and are invested in their choice to do so.

People vote because they believe that their vote matters, especially in closely contested elections. They feel that it gives them a personal say in the way the country is run. If ideologies and principles are at stake, they vote on issues that can affect the entire nation. However, our political parties have absolutely no differences in ideologies and policies. And, even if they have different political nuances, it is often the tail wagging the dog. They are afraid to make unpopular decisions because they do not want to lose the support of the ‘masses’ (the ‘common people’ in our society). The masses are usually somewhat dependent on the support of politicians and ‘area leaders’ for their survival. They are also the citizens who tend to make up their own rules and are often facilitated by the politicians.

FEELING MANIPULATED

If the manifesto of a political party could convince the electorate that their representatives will ensure that taxpayers’ monies will be properly spent so that the citizens will benefit from the best value for money, and that there will be accountability if incompetence and/or corruption should take place, voters would turn out in droves. However, generally, people do not believe that most campaign promises have any veracity. Citizens are feeling manipulated, and they don’t like it. Furthermore, our two political parties are equivocal in matters of honesty and integrity; therefore, many constituents feel that they want nothing to do with either of them.

As a rule, at all levels of society, Jamaicans vote on matters that will impact their personal lives and not on matters of national or global concern. Crime is a national problem, but people are only afraid of crime because it may affect their personal lives. If crime were confined to specific communities, most people would not be worried about it. Our tendency for insularity and selfishness feeds into the poverty/violence cycle and ends up affecting everyone, and our international image.

FAVOURITISM

Even the people occupying the upper echelons of our society vote with enlightened self-interest. The little man seeks the support of the politicians, but the big man also seeks their support at a level that most of us can’t begin to comprehend. At the highest level of society, sometimes the support from politicians comes in the form of favouritism when it comes to contracts and national programmes. There are convoluted and even intricate ways of circumventing the strict rules regarding how government contracts are awarded. Additionally, close association with top politicians bode well in the business environment. Close association also gives the topanaris citizens networking opportunities to further their business enterprises and to influence the decisions made by our leaders.

In past local government elections, I voted for the person that [I believed] would do good things for our community. I did not simply and blindly vote for any particular political party; the candidate had to portray certain characteristics that made me believe that he/she was the ideal person for the job, at that time. I have had patients who were vying for the position of councillor. I voted for one and not for the other because I was able to assess their commitment and capabilities.

I was not able to vote because I knew nothing about the candidates vying for councillor in my community. No one ever presented themselves to anyone in my area. Instead, a few days before the election, someone [illegally] trespassed on and littered the Jamaica Public Service pole outside my office by nailing 2 posters of a candidate on it. Because they were the only posters on the entire road, I felt unfairly labelled as a supporter of that political party. Three days before the election, two notification cards with images of that same candidate appeared in the office postbox. And, on the day of the election, the other politician sent two cards.

It was blatantly obvious to me that neither of them was serious about campaigning nor getting to know their potential constituents. All they wanted was our votes, and they were expecting people to vote along party lines. In fact, before all of this and even now, I know nothing of these mysterious individuals or of any involvement in my community. I have never known who I could turn to when the community was having problems. I had absolutely no idea for whom I would be casting my precious vote. Many citizens had similar experiences, and this contributed significantly to the appallingly low voter turnout. I hope that the politicians learn something from this.