Carolyn Cooper | Mark Golding must disown his father’s legacy right now?

When John Golding came in 1953 to teach orthopaedic surgery at the University College of the West Indies, he could not possibly have anticipated that, one day, his son, Mark, would become a candidate for prime minister of Jamaica. Truth is stranger than fiction. This proverb confirms that reality is sometimes much more unbelievable than a fictional story. Who would have thought that an Englishman would have produced a son of the Jamaican soil who could claim the privilege of working for the benefit of the African majority? But there you have it.

John Golding was an excellent role model of public service for his son. Soon after his arrival, he led the fight against the 1954 polio epidemic which attacked approximately 1,500 people. In June, there were four cases in Clarendon. In July, the virus reached Kingston. By September, polio was all over the island. In October, Golding established the Mona Rehabilitation Centre to provide support for victims of the paralysing disease.

Then, on September 1, 1957, there was the horrific Kendal crash. According to the Jamaica National Heritage Trust website, “At around 11:30 p.m. a train carrying some 1,600 passengers derailed its tracks. Close to 200 persons lost their lives. Varying accounts indicate that between 400 and 700 persons sustained injuries in what was described as the worst transportation system tragedy in Jamaica’s history, and the second worst rail disaster in the world at the time.”

The handwriting expert, Beverley East, author of Finding Mr Write: A New Slant on Selecting the Perfect Mate, wrote a gripping novel, Reaper of Souls, about the terrible accident in which 14 of her relatives died. Again, John Golding’s expertise enabled survivors of the crash to be rehabilitated to the best of their ability.

A HARD SELL

I am one of those optimists who encouraged Mark Golding to run for president of the People’s National Party. We considered him to be prime minister material. We had faith in the Jamaican people that, in the 21st century, we could accept a leader who does not look like the majority of us. After all, we’ve had prime ministers of all shades who represent our “out of many, one” national motto: black, blackish-brownish, brown and near-white.

It was a hard sell to persuade Mark Golding to step up to the plate. He was quite happy to continue as a member of parliament representing his constituency and the wider Jamaican public as best as he could. Once, he even admitted to me that he sometimes wondered if he should not return to the pleasures of private life. He would no longer be subjected to all those detractors washing dem mouth pon him. Calling him ‘backra massa,’ a completely undeserved term of abuse! His ancestry does not lie in plantation slavery.

Mark Golding did take the plunge and is now the leader of the opposition, with the potential to become prime minister. He has made mistakes that have enabled his critics to question his right to lead black people. But he has certainly made it clear that, unlike many hungry-belly politicians, he is not in public service for the money. That is why he was able to immediately give up the unconscionable salary increase that the Jamaica Labour Party government dished out to parliamentarians.

Golding is now the victim of a new line of attack. British citizenship, inherited from his father, apparently constitutes a grave conflict of interest. It does not matter that Golding is a born-an-grow Jamaican whose dual citizenship does not disqualify him from being a member of parliament. Self-serving Andrew Holness has declared that the office of prime minister and leader of the opposition should not be held by anyone with dual citizenship. There are no legal grounds on which to make that claim.

‘THE JLP HAS BECOME DESPERATE!’

Peter Espeut argues persuasively in an excellent column on dual citizenship, published on May 31, that, “There have also been vociferous demands that Mr Golding renounce his British citizenship immediately! Or step down immediately! In the face of almost certain defeat at the next general election – so the opinion polls indicate – the JLP has become desperate! It is actually quite pathetic!”

On May 30, Golding was interviewed by Isat Buchanan on his “Context Matters” podcast. Widening the debate on dual citizenship beyond his own case, Golding declared, “I want a proper dialogue and conversation in Jamaica about dual citizenship. About who we are – millions of Jamaicans who live outside of Jamaica, many of whom are dual citizens—and how we plan to engage with them, deal with them, and treat them.”

Golding added, “When we get through that debate, if the preponderance of opinion is that I should, as leader of the PNP, leader of the opposition, and prime minister-in-waiting, not have dual citizenship, then I will give it up. Because I intend to serve Jamaica to the best of my capacity. I will give it up. But I am not rushing to go do it because two guys say I should or three guys say it.”

Former prime minister P.J. Patterson dashed fuel on the dual citizenship fire at a forum, “Reasoning about the Jamaican Constitution,” held last Wednesday. He made this statement: “Citizens of the Commonwealth are legally entitled to sit in the House or the Senate. I am deliberately confining my remarks to the constitutionality of any such position. Political considerations are well above my grade in the pavilion.” As a retired politician, P.J. can sit in the pavilion and watch the cricket match. But for Andrew Holness and Mark Golding, “political considerations” will, ultimately, determine how the game is played and won.

Carolyn Cooper, PhD, is a teacher of English language and literature and a specialist on culture and development. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and karokupa@gmail.com