I felt the need to continue on the trend I
haphazardly started with last week with regard to The Bahamas and what the
future may look like for the Church in our daily lives. I also prefaced
that submission with the understanding that we can't look into the future in a
linear fashion: In that, I mean to say is that we can't think about
the future and say with any broad stroke that "this" is where
The Bahamas would be in general or overall, but rather where we would be and
what we would look like on several fronts.
As said, last week was about the role of the
Church. Politics, in this vein, is no different in terms
of evolution, even though how it impacts the general population and what
it means for the majority of us matters significantly different than that of
the Church.
What's really trending in Bahamian
Politics? The short hand is that the major parties are fracturing.
Not quite unexpected, because as the population grows, the larger organizations
will find it challenging to serve all of the people under their tent.
This is not to say that the larger parties are
unorganized and can't muster up enough coordination to serve all of the people
under it's tent, but the fact of the matter is we're dealing with people.
People and by extension organizations and the society at large, have
hierarchies. Totem Poles. A pecking order. So, often times, gifts and hand-outs
start from the top and filter down to the bottom.
As you can imagine, the people at the top got there
because of their selfishness, aggression and to some extent greed. The higher
up and more distant they become, the more likelihood of them becoming
disengaged from the average citizen. It's easier for a camel to enter into the
eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.
I'm not excusing the disengagement at all. I find it
deplorable, particularly for a still, relatively, small and intimate country
like The Bahamas. But, to some extent, the people in charge must look like the
people in charge: If that means subjugating, creating distance, and
subordinating the so called "lesser-folk", then so be it. If only by
the sheer nature of the job. As they say, it's lonely at the top.
The Bahamas has a unique problem within that
matrix:The baby-boomer leadership is deeply conservative with an
ever increasingly liberal youth demographic (Generation Y and beyond), mixed in
with a frustrated Generation X that feels stifled and
cheated because of the baby-boomer generation's staying power and cling to
power. For whatever reason. .
Seriously however, not only the age group
differences pose a direct challenge, the baby-boomer generation has had a
significant amount of staying power. Something that should be commended, but
also be concerning because as they hold on to power, their ideas become stale,
their way of thinking about doing business is outdated, in addition to
their incestuously uncanny ability to select people of "like mind";
i.e., people within their own age grouping and also persons from younger
generations who, even if only, feigning interest in whatever programme
that comes out of that baby-boomer think-tank.
Without a doubt there will be a conflict of ideas
coming out of the age-group differences as we move forward. As we are seeing
more and more intently now, the younger generations have too much information
at their finger-tips to be given the same story of the same issues that have
not worked. One only has to read Facebook for 30 minutes to find out how much
they know, where did they know it from, how it was confirmed and who is being
straight up and honest about it.
What we are currently seeing develop is
an era of duplicity in politics. One in which is as seedy as much as it is
unpredictable.
We have often times heard terms used,
particularly within the last 10 to 15 years: "PLP's for (insert name of
leader of the FNM), or "FNM's for (insert name of the leader of the PLP).
In fact, the 2007 election was centred around such duplicitous, cloak and
dagger gimmickry that one may liken to a Pink Panther movie, just with real
life effects and consequences. The 2012 election was no different either, but
less pronounced with more action post election by the then governing party.
The era of duplicity is also going to be
very challenging, due to the fact that the chain that binds the
generations has a rusted and shop-worn link: That is the flow of
information that Generation Y (Millennials) has at their fingertips
right now that the preceding Generation X did not have enough of to make
their assessments.We can't overlook that, at all. And as equally
important, the knowledge of the tools and templates to use in their
assessments.
Along with the oncoming era of duplicity and one can
also say a lack blind loyalty, we also have now a developed culture of
distrust, chugging it's fuel from the years and years
of obeisance under a "Dark" Bahamas. We have a
Generation Y that has a greaterc hance and opportunity to review
the ideas and issues form the past, juxtaposed with current affairs, and
how it has shaped us to where we are today. All at the same time, the perceived
source of much ire, the baby-boomer generation, is still in control if
only psychologically,yet again adding to the frustration and sentiments of
being cheated by Generation X while being simultaneously
being greeted with disgusted sneers and sarcastic grunts from
Generation Y.
Within the next 25 years, at least, as the
baby-boomers are taken to their eternal glory at the very least, we will have a
little challenge reconciling the following generations: Generation X will
want to reclaim what they feel was stolen from them by the baby-boomer
generation, and Generation Y will begin to say that you can't steal from me so
easily and so openly as your predecessors did to you. This is going to create
conflict. Even though there is a lot for all, the fact of the matter is we
can't ever quantify feelings and sentiments: Being cheated and lied to
on the one hand, and pervasive false need that borders on extreme
avarice on the other.
All within the same time the political process will
become more fractured, distrust will build and build in thee most acrimonious
ways. It will take tremendous acts of courage to mend the fences and provide
equal opportunity for all. Regardless of where you started from, or where you
are now.
This is not to say all is shot to hell right now as
we speak, but I think everyone with an ounce of intelligence can see quite
clearly that the policies of50 years ago have not worked in the last15
years, at the very least; it's obvious that the proceeding
generations' time is being eaten up by a generation, the baby-boomers,
that have simply exhausted their usefulness (quite respectfully speaking); the
cannibalization and lack of security for the future is based on old ideas that
are not working and at best deleterious to the future development of The
Bahamas, long after the baby boomers would have finally exited the stage; and
the current carry-over of failed concepts of managing country-wide
problems is not going over smoothly, and will become more problematic for
anyone coming afterwards trying to implement the baby-boomer's methodology of
doing things.
The era of distrust and duplicity is upon us. As
with all countries, from large empires to small fiefdoms, there have always
been successive years of "challenge periods". The Bahamas is right up
next to our very own, made worse by the global financial collapse in, 2008 and
prior to which was taken strong note of as a result of the September 11 Attacks
and what many analyst claim precipitated the attacks which was, essentially,
stinking thinking!
This is not to prophecy of things to be, but a warning of what may happen if we
do not summon the courage, intelligence, decency and tact to handle this matter
in a judicious manner. But first we must understand the problem. To which I
humbly rest my submission on the matter on the table for
perusal.
Youri Aramin Kemp, is
President and CEO of "KEMP GLOBAL", a Management Consultancy firm, based
in the Bahamas which serves all markets. Our core competencies are:
Business and Project Planning and Design; Project Execution; Market
Researchn and Analysis; and Operations Development. Through our
affiliates, we offer Construction Services; Public Relations Services;
and IT and back office support to small and medium sized businesses.
Email: globalviewtoday@gmail.com
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