The year in politics under review shows an Opposition party that appears to be a little less divided towards the end of the year than it was at the beginning, even if it is still somewhat distracted from its main job of being an effective opposition.

On the other hand, 2021 shows a governing party that, unlike in 2020, may have lost the plot in its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, in particular as it relates to Jamaica achieving a 65 per cent vaccination rate. Jamaica now ranks as one of the least vaccinated countries in the Caribbean at a time when vaccines are widely available.

Also, the persistently high murder rate has left many questioning whether the government has any answers to this problem, especially after its main crime-fighting tool – the state of emergency – was derailed in the Parliament.

There were the usual scandals involving politicians during the year and one prominent politician who speaks loudly was allegedly caught dumping garbage in a no-dumping zone.

Among the winners in politics in 2021 are St Andrew East Rural Member of Parliament and Deputy House Speaker, Juliet Holness;  Angela Brown-Burke and first-term Members of Parliament as a group.

The losers include George Wright, Dr Christopher Tufton, Floyd Green, Robert Montague and Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert.

Those treading water in the middle include Prime Minister Andrew Holness and Opposition Leader Mark Golding.

See below, OBSERVER ONLINE’s ranking of the best and worst-performing politicians in 2021:

THE BIG WINNERS:

Juliet Holness is not afraid to tell it like it is

Two-term Member of Parliament for St Andrew West Rural, Juliet Holness, continues to grow in confidence. The wife of the prime minister continues to show that she is prepared to chart her own course in politics, even if that involves criticising her own party, its members or government institutions.

In October, during a rare departure from the principle of collective responsibility, Holness launched a broadside against the Dr Christopher Tufton-led Ministry of Health and Wellness over its handling of the administration of the Pfizer vaccine.

While appearing before the Parliament’s Public Administration and Appropriations Committee, Holness voiced her disapproval of Tufton’s ministry, accusing it of contributing to the poor vaccine take up in the country. She took issue with the fact that the ministry changed course on its original decision that was communicated to the public that the Pfizer vaccine would be administered only to children and adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17.

The vaccine was subsequently given to adults and the 208,000 doses were quickly used up. At one stage over 80,000 people were anxiously awaiting their second dose of the vaccine which has since been made available to the general population as there are now adequate supplies on the island.

Holness, who is also deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, also had a dressing down for the rambunctious Everald Warmington during a sitting of the House in late October.

Warmington, the constantly disruptive Member of Parliament for St Catherine South West, was upbraided by Holness for his uncouth behavior as she sat in the Speaker’s chair. This was after he made disparaging remarks about the Leader of Opposition Business in the House, Anthony Hylton, referring to him as a “quashie lawyer”. Holness’ stance was notable as some Government MPs were visibly cheering   Warmington along as he was being disruptive. They later applauded Holness for the stance she took against him.

Describing his behaviour as inappropriate, Holness charged MPs to show respect for each other.

Separately, she has been a vocal and knowledgeable member of the various parliamentary committees on which she has sat since her entry into Gordon House.

Edmund Bartlett keeping Jamaica’s tourism afloat

One of the best performing ministers in government in 2021 is Edmund Bartlett.

The affable, permanently optimistic tourism minister and his staff at the Jamaica Tourist Board have managed to keep the industry afloat during the worst days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The turnaround now sees a majority of the more than 100,000 tourism workers who were sent home during the first 120-days of the pandemic back on the job.

While bookings out of Jamaica’s biggest market, the United States, remains strong and with tourism interests looking forward to a good winter season, Bartlett is acutely aware that the omicron variant and Jamaica’s low vaccine take-up could pose significant challenges. To this end he has constantly implored Jamaicans to take the jab.

Overall, things are looking up despite the uncertainties with the cruise sector rebounding which in turn will benefit transport operators, craft vendors and the many others who earn a living from tourism.

In the meantime, Bartlett continues to seek out new markets and new air linkages for Jamaica’s tourism product.

Dr Angela Brown-Burke creates history; elected first female chairperson of the PNP

Member of Parliament for St Andrew South West, Dr Angela Brown-Burke, created history on October 31 by becoming the first woman to be elected to chair the People’s National Party [PNP].

Her victory came almost a year after she lost in an earlier bid to become chairman of the strife-torn 83-year-old political organisation. 

As the PNP’s spokesperson on education, Brown-Burke has made timely contributions and recommendations in the Parliament on the area she shadows. Despite having many detractors, she remains unfazed, a key attribute for any politician.

First-Term Members of Parliament:

The contribution of several of the 20 first-term Members of Parliament [18 on the government side] to the 2021/2022 State of the Constituency Debate was such that it got the attention and commendation of a number of veteran MPs.

What they have in common is that they were entering the Parliament for the first time after being victorious in the September 3, 2020 general election.

Among those commending the new [many of them young] parliamentarians were the Leader of Government Business in the House, Edmund Bartlett and Labour Minister Karl Samuda.

Standout presentations included those given by Kingston Central MP, Donovan Williams, Manchester Central MP, Rhoda Crawford, St Ann North West MP Krystal Lee, and Tova Hamilton representing Trelawny Northern.

MPs use the annual debate to update the Parliament on the state of affairs in their respective constituencies. With the needs being many and resources scarce, the debate is also an opportunity for MPs to influence allocations to the national budget. Bartlett has assured the House that such was the quality of the presentations that some of the suggestions will be taken on board when the next budget is crafted. Such was the impact of the rookie MPs during their maiden presentations that they are collectively listed among the winners in politics in 2021.

Lothan Cousins is confident, maybe a bit arrogant

The MP for Clarendon South Western, Lothan Cousins is just one of two first-term MPs on the Opposition benches, the other being businessman Hugh Graham who represents the St Catherine North West constituency.

An attorney-at-law, Cousins is unfazed by the fact that there are just 14 Opposition MPs in the 63-seat House. In fact, he seems to relish the opportunity to speak and he does so often, his contributions having substance. While he speaks mostly on matters relating to agriculture and is a fierce advocate for farmers, at one stage suggesting that they should be allowed to bear arms in the face of persistent praedial larceny, he is not afraid to speak on any topic.

And, he has shown that he is both independent-minded and fearless, even while he is under verbal attack from government MPs with their superior numbers.

On November 23, during a contentious debate in the House on a motion to extend states of emergency in five parishes across seven police divisions, Cousins showed that he will not be cowed.

He drew the ire of government members for suggesting that soldiers were breaching the rights of Jamaicans by arbitrarily rounding up persons and “throwing them in a cell” during SOEs. He went further by stating that the Commissioner of Police, Major General Anthony Anderson, should be replaced, since he was not doing a good job reining in the country’s crime problem. Cousins suggested further that Anderson being an ex-army man would have a military solution to the country’s crime problem.

Government MPs instantly hurled insults at him, even calling him a “disgrace” for highlighting the failures of the commissioner. Despite their pleas, including from House leader Edmund Bartlett, Prime Minister Andrew Holness and House Speaker Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert for him to withdraw the remarks, Cousins refused to do so.

He insisted he had nothing to withdraw.

Notably, when senior Opposition MPs, including Opposition Leader Mark Golding, Mikael Phillips, Fitz Jackson and Julian Robinson launched a critique against the now resigned HEART Trust/NSTA Chairman, Edward Gabbidon in the House in December over his conflicts of interest at the government agency, none were told to withdraw their statements.

Daryl Vaz – The Comeback Kid

Long before he was appointed to his latest portfolio and when he was still the minister of land and environment, Daryl Vaz was hit with a major setback when his United States visa and that of his wife Annmarie, were revoked. Vaz and Member of Parliament for East Kingston and Port Royal, Phillip Paulwell, both had their US visas cancelled in November 2019. No reasons were given for the revocation.

By June 2020, Vaz was stripped of the land, environment and climate change portfolio by Prime Minister Andrew Holness. This was after a Jamaica Observer report revealed a controversial bid by the minister to obtain a 25-year lease that would have allowed him to construct a private cabin on protected lands within the Blue and John Crow Mountains National Park, a World Heritage Site. The cabin was earmarked for use in the lucrative Airbnb sector. The cost of the lease was $120,000 per annum.

Vaz withdrew his bid, but he did not escape criticism that he betrayed the optics of transparency and engaged in a conflict of interest. He subsequently accused the Jamaica Conservation and Development Trust, managers of the heritage site, of being hypocrites.

But the high profile West Portland MP made a return to the Cabinet after the September 2020 general election and is in charge of the important energy, science and technology portfolio where he has made the roll out of broadband his top priority.

Vaz is in a race to roll out broadband across the country with a view to bringing Jamaica fully into the digital age.

The much needed expansion of the broadband network will ultimately make online learning more efficient and accessible while being a big boost to business, in particular the expanding business process outsourcing sector.

In addition to playing the lead role in the important broadband initiative, Vaz saw his US visa returned, with the United States Embassy in Kingston reportedly issuing a five-year diplomatic visa to the minister.

Senator Damion Crawford, more measured in his utterances

The oft-criticized Opposition Senator, Damion Crawford finished the year strongly with some powerful presentations and contributions in the Senate.

Known for his off-the-top comments which often land him in hot water, Crawford appeared to have adopted a more measured tone as the year progressed, a seeming sign of his political maturity.

His contribution to the debate on the motion to extend the SOEs received high praise from none other than notable newspaper columnist, Gordon Robinson. Crawford stood his ground while offering his reasons for not supporting the motion which ultimately failed. He would later draw the ire of Senate President, Tom Tavares-Finson for withholding his support.

Matthew Samuda – wise beyond his youth

With a high level of confidence displayed both inside and outside the Senate, there are now calls for minister without portfolio in the ministry of national security, Matthew Samuda, to take over as security minister from the embattled Dr Horace Chang.

Samuda has shown tremendous leadership in the areas he has focused on – the Department of Correctional Services which is undergoing major reform and the juvenile correctional facilities.

For the most part, actions taken under his guidance has prevented a major outbreak of COVID-19 inside the island’s prisons since 2020. Additionally, he is seen as a motivating influence for young wards of the state, constantly encouraging them to be the best they can be and to stay clear of a life of crime once they leave the correctional facilities.

Samuda serves as the JLP’s attack dog in the senate where he has proven himself to be an expert debater and where his presentations are well researched. He is a reservoir of crime statistics dating back to before he was born. Whether he is asked to manage the tough security portfolio is a question that could be answered shortly as the prime minister gets ready to reshuffle his cabinet.

THE BIG LOSERS:

George Wright the alleged stool-wielding politician

The biggest loser in politics in 2021 is the new kid on the block, the JLP’s George Wright.

Beginning in April with a viral video, and for several months afterwards, the most talked about story in Jamaica centred on the first-term parliamentarian. That was until the Kevin Smith and the Pathways International cult saga.

The question on the lips of every Jamaican was ‘Who is the man in the video?’

Wright, who wrested the previously impregnable Westmoreland Central constituency from the People’s National Party in the September, 2020 general election, is believed to have been the man who was caught on a poor quality video recording dealing a vicious beating to a woman in Hanover.

The severity of the beating was underlined by the fact that the man used both his clenched fists and a stool in the beat down of the woman, allegedly Wright’s common-law wife, Tanisha Singh. She had to seek medical attention.

After the video emerged, Wright was promptly dropped from the governing party’s parliamentary caucus. With both Singh and Wright refusing to give a formal statement to the police, the investigation ended before it got underway. Eight months later, Wright has still not publicly stated whether he was the man in the low-quality video.

That did not prevent calls for his resignation from the Parliament. He has refused to do so and, while he has resigned from the JLP, Wright remains in the House of Representatives as an independent Member of Parliament.

Dr Christopher Tufton – gasping for air, can’t convince a majority of Jamaicans to take the vaccine

Unlike 2020 when he was the face of the government’s response to the emerging COVID-19 pandemic when he and healthcare workers were literally serenaded and placed on pedestals, Tufton cuts a lonesome figure these days.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness no longer appears alongside him at COVID-19 press briefings and certainly did not rush to his defence when he came under attack over his ministry’s flip flopping on the roll out of the Pfizer vaccine or the debacle that saw hospitals running out of medical grade oxygen on the weekend of August 26-29.

For many, Tufton continues to be one of the top-performing ministers in the Holness Cabinet but public perception is that he is being undermined in his own party.

While he was lauded for his stellar performance in his ministry’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the shine has now faded in the face of bureaucratic bungling and missed vaccine targets.

While questions remain about whether persons who died in hospitals on that fateful weekend in August perished because of a lack of oxygen, Tufton has pointed the finger of blame at Industrial Gases Limited [IGL], the country’s sole provider of medical grade oxygen while the company has pointed the finger back at him.

And, in an unusual departure from the principle of collective responsibility, government Member of Parliament for St Andrew West Rural, Juliet Holness, launched a broadside against the Tufton-led Ministry of Health and Wellness over its handling of the administration of the Pfizer vaccine.

On October 5, while appearing before the Parliament’s Public Administration and Appropriations Committee, Holness voiced her disapproval of Tufton’s ministry, accusing it of contributing to the poor vaccine take up in the country.

Floyd Green – Young rising star left home on the wrong day

It is a big deal if you are dropped from the Cabinet or otherwise forced to resign. Former Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Floyd Green knows it is a big deal.

It appeared that the young, bright attorney-at-law could do no wrong. His political star was on the rise. The two-term MP for St Elizabeth South West was, by all accounts, doing a good job as minister for a tough portfolio but which is of great interest to the country’ economic fortunes. When the agriculture sector grows, the economy grows and Green was presiding over groundbreaking policies, including securing insurance coverage for farmers and fisher folk. He commanded the respect of farmers and his staff at the ministry and his constituents adore him.

Then came that fateful day in September, a day that was designated a no-movement day by the government as part of efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19 on the island.

Green, apparently, could not resist the urge to party with other young labourites. They were caught on a now viral video flossing and even poking fun at the no-movement day in clear breach of the COVID protocols. It was clear that Green would not survive as a member of the cabinet as the government could not face fresh accusations of a double standard in terms of how the COVID protocols are applied.

Following public backlash, Green resigned his ministerial position on the morning of September 15, mere hours after the video went viral.

“I have disappointed so many. My family including my son, my Prime Minister and most importantly, the people of Jamaica who I have sworn to serve.

“No matter how briefly, and regardless of the circumstances, I should never have participated in any engagement that could indicate a lack of appreciation of the difficult and serious realities that now face the entire country,” said Green.

“My actions have demonstrated a lack of sensitivity for the difficult realities that all of us are facing currently,” he added.

With a bright future ahead of him in politics, Green could soon make a return to the executive when the prime minister reshuffles his cabinet early in 2022.

Robert Montague – drawn to controversy/scandals

It does not seem to matter in which ministry Western St Mary MP and JLP Chairman Robert Montague is placed; he is always caught up in scandal or controversy.

The latest controversies to hit the minister of transport and mining involve the state-owned Airports Authority of Jamaica [AAJ] and Clarendon Alumina Partners [CAP].

In November, Montague sacked the boards of the AAAJ and the Norman Manley International Airport Limited amid the heat he was taking in relation to the controversial US$3 million [J$450 million] investment in start-up entity, First Rock Capital Holdings, without the requisite permission from the Ministry of Finance. Questions have also been raised about certain contractual arrangements at CAP, the vehicle through which the government owns a 45 per cent stake in bauxite company Jamalco.

Montague has previously been the minister of agriculture as well as minister of national security. He was hit by controversy and scandal at those two ministries before he was shifted. According to political pundits, Montague is a prime candidate to be dropped from the Holness cabinet at the next reshuffle likely to take place in January.

Horace Chang – hobbled by crime

Long before the year came to a close, the calls were growing for Dr Horace Chang to be relieved of his duties as minister of national security.

Nothing, including states of emergency, has placed a significant dent in the country’s frightening murder rate under Chang’s watch. The 69-year-old deputy prime minister at times appear overwhelmed and unconvincing as he makes announcements regarding efforts to strengthen the security forces and to go after gangs.

The fact that he has been minister at a time when SOEs were most extensively used even if they were halted twice since 2018 because of a lack of Opposition support in the Parliament, and at a time when the security ministry has been allocated up to 10 times more in resources than at any other time in the country’s history, has not helped his cause.

With more than 1,400 murders in 2021, Chang may be given a new assignment when the cabinet is reshuffled.

Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert – the accused garbage-dumping Speaker

Regarded by some as one of the most biased Speakers of the House of Representatives, Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert has often been accused of trying to muzzle Opposition MPs while allowing government MPs to be disruptive and disrespectful.

Her cause was not helped when she, her son and an employee were allegedly caught dumping garbage in a no-dumping zone in the parish of St Ann.

The allegations against the speaker are that, shortly before noon on August 15, the police were patrolling along the Salem main road when they saw three people exit a pick-up truck and started disposing of garbage.

The police officers reportedly approached the trio and pointed to a ‘no dumping’ sign in the area. It is alleged that Dalrymple-Philibert scoffed at the officers, asking: “You know who I am?” She reportedly went on to tell the cops that she is a lawyer, Speaker of the House of Representatives, and Member of Parliament for Trelawny South.

The three, including her son Giovanni Philibert and Simon Sanchez were subsequently taken to a police station and charged.

A trial date of February 21 was set for the trio when they appeared in the St Ann parish court on December 8 where the allegations were laid out.

Fayval Williams – Most students remain out of school

The failure to get most students back to face-to-face learning and keep them in the classroom 20 months into the COVID-19 pandemic is a major failure for education minister Fayval Williams.

The ministry of education which she leads is also failing badly in getting 65 per cent of secondary school students vaccinated so they can return to the classroom.

Williams also comes across as mechanical at times, heavily scripted and detached from her subject matter.

Kamina Johnson Smith accused of “childish” behaviour

While she continues to do a creditable job as minister of foreign affairs and foreign trade, Kamina Johnson Smith resorted to behavior in the Senate during 2021 that has been described as “childish” in the media.

Opposition senator Lambert Brown has been the bane of Johnson Smith ever since he accused her of lying on former senator AJ Nicholson over “threatening emails” reportedly sent to Johnson Smith by Nicholson when he was in the senate. For the most part since then, she has resorted to walking out of the chamber every time Brown gets to his feet to speak. She is often joined by her colleagues.

Stung by the criticism in the media that she has been behaving like a child, her government colleagues came to her defence.

In a statement on December 17 they said they had “taken note of two newspaper articles that have ignored the generally abhorrent conduct of Senator Brown in the Senate, which has been the source of much discourse and debate during his tenure”.

“Instead they [the newspapers] have made converted effort to focus negative attention on the Leader of Government Business, ignoring that several members of our caucus often depart from the Senate chamber when Senator Brown makes presentations,” the senators said.

They argued that their action, while not disruptive to the business of the senate was “in protest to his [Brown’s] consistent displays of disrespectful, discourteous and unparliamentary conduct.”

However, what the JLP senators did not say was that they usually walk out even before Brown opens his mouth.

While the verdict is still out on who is winning this battle, Brown often pokes fun at Johnson Smith and her colleagues, inviting them to walk out before he begins his presentations.

Heroy Clarke – talkative without substance

Clarke, the two-term MP for St James Central is one of the most vocal members on the government benches, especially on the committees where he represents the JLP.

For many of his detractors, he often does not make much sense. That was underlined by the swift and vicious comments that were leveled at him after he made his contribution to the otherwise intellectually thoughtful State of the Constituency debate in November.

Apart from his contribution being one of the weakest in terms of substance, it was soon shredded after he proposed a law that would mandate paternity testing of newborns.

The proposal was soon dismissed as both dangerous and simplistic. Clarke had argued that disputes over paternity in a country where a significant percentage of Jamaican men have been ‘given’ children when in fact they are not the biological father, would help to prevent domestic disputes and lower the country’s murder rate.

His detractors have argued that such tests could endanger the lives of unfaithful women and thus have the opposite effect of what Clarke was trying to accomplish.

‘AS YOU WERE’— Those found to be marking time in the middle

The country’s two main political leaders – Prime Minister Andrew Holness and Opposition leader Mark Golding fall in the category of ‘as you were’ in 2021.

Neither gentleman did enough to warrant being placed among the winners or losers in the year under review.

Andrew Holness letting in ‘own goals’

In the case of Holness, he along with Tufton and healthcare workers were deservedly lauded for their management of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Not so much for the prime minister in 2021 as a wary nation continues to flout COVID protocols, vaccine targets are missed and its rollout botched, murders have surged past the 1,400-mark, the dollar continues to decline against its main trading partners and the price of basic consumer goods continue to skyrocket.

Amid this uncertainty, and despite signs that the economy has started to rebound with a resurging tourism sector, the Holness government continues to be hobbled by scandals which have dogged the administration since 2016.

At the JLP’s annual conference in November, former party leader Bruce Golding warned Holness not to squander the goodwill he has with the Jamaican people and to not be afraid to use his political capital. He also told him that too many own goals were being scored with the prime minister forced to put out the fires. Golding’s veiled reference was in relation to the many scandals plaguing the JLP.

Despite the pressures of running a government, Holness often times comes across as too defensive, too dismissive or too arrogant.

Holness appears to be banking on a cabinet reshuffle he has said will happen early in the new year, to help right the ship of state and propel him back to the winner’s column.

Mark Golding seems to have weathered the storm, but…

The Opposition leader has had a torrid time since becoming PNP president in 2020. He has had a nightmarish time similar to what Edward Seaga faced in the 1990s trying to unify the JLP.

But, lacking the steely personality of a Seaga, Golding at times appear clueless in how to rein in dissenting comrades led by the controversial activist Karen Cross, who launched repeated broadsides against him, his friend and senator, Peter Bunting and the party’s general secretary, Dr Dayton Campbell.

Golding was also hit with the mass resignations of his vice presidents – Damion Crawford, Mikael Phillips and Dr WyKeham McNeill, and chairman Phillip Paulwell. As if that were not enough, president of the party’s youth arm, Krystal Tomlinson also resigned.

Through it all, Golding, though appearing awkward and out of place at times in his public utterances, appeared to have weathered the storm as the year drew to a close. He got a new slate of vice presidents and a history-making chairman and, although matters relating to Campbell and Cross are still before the court, the party seems more unified at the end of the year than at the beginning.

Golding faced criticism in December for his ‘get wicked pon dem’ statement and for describing JLP chairman Robert Montague as a ‘likkle bwoy’ while trying to tie him to the scandals/controversies at the transport and mining ministry. Neither statement appeared to have hurt him. The ‘get wicked pon dem’ statement was in relation to getting comrades ready to contest the next local government election which is due in February.

As to whether the PNP is truly united, 2022 will tell.

Dayton Campbell says it’s all a lie

Under pressure PNP general secretary Dr Dayton Campbell held on to his position and chaired the party’s annual conference in October, despite what many saw as “serious allegations” made against him by activist Karen Cross.

Campbell has maintained his innocence and a defamation suit he has brought against Cross is still before the court.

The embattled general secretary has already won in court after Cross and fellow activist Natalee Stack, were each fined $750,000 for contempt of court in the matter relating to Campbell.

Campbell had filed a defamation lawsuit against both Cross and Stack in relation to allegations of sexual misconduct purportedly involving minors that they levelled against him on social media.

A gag order was later imposed on all parties, restricting them from making any further public commentary on the matter.

However, both Cross and Stack continued to use their social media platforms to make the allegations against Campbell, and were consequently found guilty of contempt of court in July.

In May, news emerged that Cross had filed an explosive defence in the Supreme Court in the defamation suit that Campbell filed against her.

In her defence, Cross included signed statements, allegedly witnessed by justices of the peace, from three women making allegations of sexual misconduct against Campbell, while they were minors.

But responding to the much-publicised allegations, Campbell, in a statement at the time, said he rejected “in the strongest of terms”, recent and ongoing allegations made against his character by Cross and others. His future in politics could be determined by the courts.