Dear Editor: Congratulations must be extended to Prime Minister Denzil Douglas on securing an unprecedented fourth term in office. He faced the polls with a lackluster team, and did what many of his colleagues Prime Ministers of the region have attempted to do and been callously rejected By a weary electorate. Indeed the only other Prime Minister who achieved such a feat was the Most Honourable PJ Patterson of Jamaica. No wonder he was the featured speaker at the Labour Party’s last conference. Maybe PJ shared the winning formula with Denzil. Notwithstanding this fantastic achievement, one is left to wonder about the state of democracy in the Federation and whether the Labour Party has a succession plan in place for when Denzil Douglas inevitably loses his shine and relevance to the times. It is clear that the Labour Party ran on a Denzil Douglas ticket and that his coat tails were as long as a bride’s train, since none of the candidates seemed to have even a smidgen of individual appeal. A number of polls and focus groups conducted By Peter Wickham and CADRES suggested that there was a strong desire for change in the Federation, and that the Labour Party should try to renew itself to maintain its appeal. One way to do this is By sending a clear signal that there is life after Denzil. It is therefore possible that the delay in announcing the Cabinet was because Denzil was in fact making a determined and mature effort to give effect to the changing of the guard. Perhaps we will see a responsible Denzil Douglas signaling to the country as PJ Patterson did in Jamaica that he will not serve out the term but will hand over in sufficient time as to give the new leader time to govern and set the party up for the next election. For the sake of the Federation one remains optimistic that Denzil Douglas does not become too intoxicated By the thrill of a fourth term. Respectfully, Paula Richardson
