When you listen to Farley, you hear statesmanship, oratory of the kind you hear from world leaders – from the likes of a JFK, a Churchill, a Barack – but compare that with the outpourings of Rowley which is more reminiscent of ghetto neighbours having a shoutout, a cussout, with one another.
And if we look for an explanation for the 14-1 result, Farley had already won hands down against Rowley when it came to communication skills, when the dignity of leadership was on display and was a factor for voters in making a decision who to vote for.
Farley actually said in his victory speech that the bullying that is prevalent in Trinidad is not welcomed in Tobago and, of course, we know it was Rowley he was referring to who continues to confirm Manning’s statement that he is a raging bull.
Farley’s victory, though a bit elongated, but understandably so, was as articulate as you get at such a moment of triumph. That he does not pause for a thought or the right word, shows that he is ready for the job and that his relative newness is not a minus in this undertaking.
It’s a shame for Trinis to applaud Rowley for his arrogance when his fellow Tobagonians have shown him the door in no uncertain manner. 14-1 resonates as when you bark at a stray dog: “gone dog! Scram!”
The Rowley sycophants of Trinidad are an enemy to themselves, refusing to see that with leadership just a percent better, this country could become the paradise it could be as Tobagonians understand could happen to their country under the PDP.
But here with the PNM’s mentality of eat-grass-ketch-ass mentality, it’s just wishful thinking for us. The Trini sycophants’ day of enlightenment is light years away from that of Tobago. True, there are none so blind as those who refuse to see.
By L. Siddhartha Orie