THE LOST SHEEP

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]watched in amazement as a high church official spoke to the news media last week explaining the significance of the three days previous to Easter Sunday. Not once did the ordained servant of God refer to Jesus by name, nor did he explain his death and resurrection. Sometimes we can get so caught up in the problems of the now, that we overlook what is truly meaningful. It often happens.   

We drift into trivialities when we avert our gaze from the scriptural lost sheep and the efforts at retrieval. The story reminds us that it’s the squeaking door that needs oiled as sinners need Jesus. These truths stimulate us to study the noisy minority in our midst, compelling us to ask:  Are these the lost sheep needing God’s help? Overnight, that squeaking door that had lost its squeak when deceit and obfuscation ruled, have suddenly found it. Today, the cry is for help, but do the minority care what the majority needs and hold sacred?

The minority lives in fear. When Allen Chastanet first offered himself as a candidate to lead the United Workers Party the opposition went berserk. They openly campaigned against him, even suggesting who the delegates of the UWP should elect as leader. In my political book, only fear could have induced such behavior. Happily, no one was fooled. Had the minority opposition’s choice emerged as leader, they would have attacked him as mercilessly as they do Prime Minister Allen Chastanet today.

That same opposition had declared the 2016 general elections a contest between it and the Chastanet family. The electorate wondered whence came such unprovoked political anger and vindictiveness. It was a hostile and ugly political campaign against Allen and his father Michael, leading some of us to speculate what was the real issue at play. For some, certain secrets remained unexplained. However, when the votes were tallied, Allen and his UWP emerged victorious.

Since the 2016 elections the personal attacks against the prime minister have not stopped. Amidst the hostility and falsehoods he has distinguished himself by not replying to the vile and abusive attacks from the minority. The irony of the situation is that we know from what source these rejected garments derive their behavior. But its pointless saying to them that they are angry at the wrong man and that they would be better advised to look within for the one to direct their anger. To look inward however, would be to admit that they were fooled, and it takes courage and gonads to admit this.   

Another pointer to the mentality of the minority is to study their driving habits. They complain when the nation’s roads are in a state of disrepair and drive with caution because they have no choice. They squeal when a small tax is levied on gasoline for fixing the same roads they complained about. However, once the roads are fixed, the same complaining minority drive faster and more recklessly on the repaired roads. Is this how intelligent people behave?

Clearly, any nation in which a minority thinks and acts as if it has more rights than anyone else, and that it can burn, destroy, drive recklessly, and urinate anywhere at any time, is a nation headed for chaos and destruction.

Saint Lucia is no Rwanda, and there are no Hutus and Tutsis living here, but I wonder whether the differences between the two political parties here amount to a Caribbean Rwanda? Could the real divide be that between those who embrace Kweyol as their first language as opposed to those who hold the English Language as their own? Does this difference lead to a deeper divide? Can Saint Lucia descend into physical violence to serve its political differences? And if such a day came, who would be left standing?

I ask because I see and feel the animosity; I hear the deep hatred in some voices; and so I ask for the umpteenth time: What has Allen Chastanet and his government to do with such anger? The Government has been making a serious effort at fixing the broken economy it inherited. The minority anticipates success and fears it. Those who still crave for a return to office see their doom in Allen Chastanet’s success. That minority therefore has a selfish vested interest in frustrating the development projects government intends to roll out. It does not matter to that vex minority how many hungry mouths are fed, or how many jobs are created. That’s not their concern. Greed and power drives their agenda.     

In my time in active politics, I never took defeat at the polls personally. Neither did I search for love or acceptance in politics. I came into publical life with positive love and kindness embedded in me from the love of my parents and my extended family. And I thank God for that.

Few today are prepared to take up the political cross. Personal sacrifices are anathema to a modern generation that sees only the glitter and perks of office. Unless we deal with the monsters that have metastasized within our politics, some will unfortunately continue to slavishly oppose and destroy even when they know better. How can Saint Lucia be helped by a minority which cannot adjust its behavior even when it is thrust into office?    

Our political leaders need to relearn the lesson of the lost sheep and ask themselves whether in today’s environment they can risk losing the ninety-nine as they seek to help the lost. The lost minority drinks and drives, and urinates when and where they please. The genuine politician must discern the mischief maker and idler from the needy. To build a better more disciplined Saint Lucia, should be the primary objective of every politician.   

To that end, the government must set the national tone by treating everyone with kindness. This is necessary and essential for molding a new national personality. That kindness will be repaid in ways that even the government’s staunchest supporters couldn’t imagine.