Political parties often use symbols to communicate. An election campaign manifesto is one such symbol because it seems generally accepted that the successful production and dissemination of a manifesto is not simply a cool strategy but a symbol of a party’s resourcefulness, vision, and, broadly, qualifications for the coveted seat. The manifesto is therefore an exercise in political communication in which one party articulates its development agenda and subliminally imprints its capabilities, imagined or otherwise, in the minds of voters. From this perspective, the manifesto is a partisan political document and it is therefore treated as such by all and sundry.
Consequently, even though the main thrust of the party’s policy agenda hinges on a very national theme, the manifesto and its promises of glorified socio-economic development may not attract the national attention that it should. For the Dominica Labour Party (DLP), “Dynamic Dominica” is the theme of its Manifesto for the December 2019 General Elections. However, the concept of Dynamic Dominica has not yet occupied its place in public discourse. (Not even the pro-DLP talk shows discuss it.) This silence suggests that first, the concept has not yet been understood, sanitized, and unpacked into “neutral” nationalistic language. Consequently, most persons seem afraid to touch it; afraid that they will be accused of “still campaigning” or accused of promoting DLP’s political agenda. Second, the silence also suggests that the political infrastructure of the DLP has not yet decided how to convert this party catchphrase into a household language.
We are now therefore faced with a very potent two-word agenda for national development, crafted by the DLP, which, indeed, has relevance to any developing state, but which remains largely unexploited. Assuredly, there have been any number of buzz words in the development policy literature (e.g. “sustainable development”), but Dynamic Dominica is indigenous to Dominica; built as one of the most aggressive development strategies for the Dominican context (notwithstanding its transferability). In pursuit of its “new season of development” post Hurricane Maria, Dominica must consequently, unpack Dynamic Dominica so that every Dominican understands its mission and participates in its implementation in a context that is increasingly hostile to the survival of the nation. Let us advance our discussion of this thesis by first examining this hostile context. We can then briefly dissect the concept and then briefly discuss the place of the “ordinary citizen” in the implementation of Dynamic Dominica.
Dynamic Dominica has its genesis in some really “hard” times. The common observation in Dominica today is that the “sun is getting hotter” and the rainstorms are more violent, but many of us who grew up near the seashore can also point to areas at the shore where we used to play but which are now almost fully submerged by the sea. Additionally, in late 2019 avid divers have observed significant swathes of bleached corals in both shallow and deep waters in the Toucari Bay. Coral bleaching is a phenomenon caused by rising sea temperatures, which is explained as a direct result of the sea absorbing excess heat from the greenhouse gas emissions. Coral bleaching leads to the destruction of reefs and the gradual destruction of food sources that rely on the reefs for feeding and residence. These phenomena are not unique to Dominica. Indeed, in 2019 Science Alert an online site for science news advised that islands in the Pacific will lose sources of freshwater and be submerged by rising sea levels if current trends of CO2 emissions do not change. Consequently, with an increase in threats to Man’s existence through climate change, mass migration trends logically increase as deprived populations seek “greener pastures.” This movement, in turn, causes dislocations and conflicts within the receiving countries and between the country of origin of the migrant and the receiving countries. Added to these realities are the pandemics of Ebola, SARS, and COVID–19. Not surprisingly, the end result is the rise of nationalist ideologies and policies across the world as nations look to better control their borders and spend their resources on securing their survival; even in cases where governments seem to be embracing a globalist perspective, their policies have at their core a nationalist and regionalist agenda. In all this, the ordinary citizen, the proverbial “little ole lady on the hill,” for example, finds herself desperately seeking modern solutions to those modern problems; even affluent citizens are having a hard time providing sufficient material resources to remain afloat. Times have changed, we say.
Truth be told, these phenomena are not new, but their cumulative force creates a context that is unmatched in our history. States must therefore seek modern solutions and Dominica’s is Dynamic Dominica, which, by the way, is not a divergence from the Resilience Agenda as articulated by the Hon. Prime Minister in his post-Maria address at the UN in September 2017. The 2019 Manifesto of the Dominica Labour Party is the authority on Dynamic Dominica so, it is to that manifesto that we turn for an understanding of the concept. An analysis of that document reveals the predominance of at least 12 values, viz: Improve (“better,” “more,”), innovative, promote, sustainable, wellbeing, competitive, “climate-resistant,” elegant, national pride, industrious, “modern,” and resilient. It is, therefore, a programme for development that goes beyond simply building back in a resilient manner but it aspires to social justice, wealth generation, healthy living, happy living, and solidarity/fraternity. From this perspective, the concept of Dynamic Dominica transcends political and social chasms because it envisions outcomes that have significance to every Dominican. In brief, “Dynamic Dominica” is a strategy for a Dominica where a community of hardworking citizens (inclusive of the Dominican diaspora) toil, as one body, to develop sustainable wealth, create modern, resilient and elegant structures, and maintain a standard of living and quality of life that are the envy of others. Its terminal objectives are resilience, survival, and prosperity, but other key objectives are problem definition, goal setting, mobilization of actors, and direct resources (in the broadest definition of the term). For the Dominica Labour Party, Prime Minister Hon. Roosevelt Skerrit and his Cabinet, and the sum composite of the State and its functionaries, the pursuit of a dynamic Dominica is the way forward in a context as hostile as what we described above. It is, without doubt, a call to arms because it frames the need for urgent action by all actors within the context of the cataclysmic force of climate change and Maria-like catastrophes (e.g. COVID – 19, wars, etc.). Dynamic Dominica says: “We face an ‘existential threat’ but this is how we can survive it and prosper.”
The analysis of the Manifesto also seems to confirm the philosophical underpinnings of Dynamic Dominica. It would appear that Dynamic Dominica has its foundations in ecological modernization, an approach to public policy and development that is influenced and fashioned by the challenges and imperatives of current environmental problems. Central to the ecological perspective is the belief that organisms share space and are therefore, interdependent. Consequently, dominant principles are interaction, adaptation, resilience, symbiosis, competition, solidarity, and finite resources. From a policy perspective, therefore, we can briefly examine the operationalization of the Dynamic Dominica framework; Elsewhere[1], we have discussed a framework for action by the Public Service. Here, we can focus on the citizen and the citizen – State relationship, more specifically, the requisite cognitive processes required for its success and behaviours that are more appropriate and facilitatory to the dynamic resilience agenda.
One golden rule of implementation literature is that the cognitive readiness of key implementers and beneficiaries must be the first stage in implementation. It stands to reason therefore, that any effort to create an interdependent, symbiotic, and fraternal society presupposes the existence of mutual respect and a genuine engagement in public discourse. Public engagement and discourse cannot, however, take place in the absence of authentic and verifiable information. Dynamic Dominica therefore demands an informed and involved citizenry and a transparent state. Of course, a transparent State also places responsibility on individual actors to seek only credible sources of information before public statements. This imperative for the flow of authentic information is important because an informed citizen is psychologically mobilized and could be socially engaged for the type of effort at community building that is required for our survival. Additionally, access to reliable and rich information will pre-empt the penchant of mischief-makers to peddle disinformation and propaganda. Furthermore, as the citizen grows to trust the quality of information that he receives, his trust in the State increases and he becomes more cognitively ready to participate in the pursuit of the goals of survival and prosperity. Dynamic Dominica, therefore, calls on both the State and the citizen to engage in a mutually beneficial treatment of information.
Additionally, ecologically, organisms help each other to survive through symbiotic relations. Similarly, adaptation and resilience to modern-day challenges that threaten our survival (cancer and other NCDs, climate change, etc.) require every citizen to contribute to the community according to his capacity. The State will play its role through the provision of resources to support individual efforts but each must work from his location in order to improve his life and that of those around him. This effort could be entrepreneurial, as in the launching of a small business or community-oriented, such as planting flowers alongside the road, sponsoring a child to attend school, providing support to the Yes We Care, etc. The action of the individual actor that is geared towards building on the status quo so that it becomes better (more attractive, more sustainable, more productive) than it was is precisely what is required for a dynamic resilient Dominica.
Moreover, it is clear that Dynamic Dominica insists that the investment of resources into individual action be matched by a modern perspective regarding our relationships with each other. It is not enough to build physical structures, plant flowers, or accumulate riches. Modernization has never been solely about structures or economic prosperity, this is part of the reason that formal institutions of learning were established, to help educate and socialize citizens as new technologies and structures (physical, legal, and otherwise) were developed. In order for Dominica to achieve the modernization and resilience that are promoted by Dynamic Dominica, Dominicans must embrace attitudes that facilitate social cohesion and the development of sustained communities. Daily, it is easy to witness any number of acts that surely do not help to foster civil relations and a sense of shared destiny among Dominicans. The practice, for example, of waiting on “the Government” to do for oneself what can be done by individual and community action is counter-intuitive and destructive to the common good because it supplants agential responsibility and action to build social cohesion by indolence, selfishness, and a self-destructive mentality. The core values of Dynamic Dominica seek to take Dominicans away from these destructive conceptualizations of space and human relations and resulting human behaviour. Indeed, the demand is for a modern mindset and attitude to match modern structures and technologies. Dynamic Dominica is therefore clearly not solely a component of a partisan symbol but it resembles more and more a strategy for nation-building that will engender the growth of mental frames, attitudes, behaviours, and institutional and organisational arrangements that will ensure our survival and prosperity.
In conclusion, Hurricane Maria did not only threaten our survival and strip the forests, it shook Dominica at its core by challenging its systems. Still, it created the opportunity for a new canvas on which to rebuild. Dynamic Dominica is the broad outline that has been drawn on that canvas. At a superficial level, it is just another theme for a campaign manifesto, but “Dynamic Dominica” is not your ordinary political buzzword. Look more closely, below the surface of political rhetoric and partisan politics. It is a design that has been flavoured by ecological modernization theory, free-market economics, and epicureanism. It is noteworthy that the two largest sections in that 2019 Manifesto are entitled “The Economy of Dynamic Dominica” and “The People of Dynamic Dominica.” This is deliberate: Design a strategy for development that centres the development of Dominica on two fundamental components of development theory, material resources and humans. The strategy is therefore a direct response to the current structural conditions that facilitated its genesis. It is Dominica’s roadmap to sustainable development that is forward-thinking, democratic, that makes sense, and will engender our prosperity as a nation. These outcomes will not be realised however, if we do not take away the partisan politics from the strategy and get every Dominican to own it.
To leave it as a political slogan or to cast it aside as a relic of an election gone by is to miss a momentous opportunity to secure our survival and prosperity at a critical juncture in our development. All must heed the call to arms. Let your steps be counted in the effort.
****
Dr. Gerard Jean-Jacques (PhD, Political Science)
Areas of Specialization: Democracy, public policy, public management and governance, and power relations. The writer also has research interest in political parties, social network analysis, political speech, inter alia.
[1] “Climate Change And Climate Resilience; A Framework For Public Service Action” found at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FYeT7JIB9ikJaZnSzWaugzHsJ9Rnyx4F/view?fbclid=IwAR2zURJLIxjM9YaZEz-Dw4TlJEZhYqV76yjAUoKYyN-DTFluExJSttCUDIQ
Comments
Post a Comment