NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS: ONE YEAR IN POWER

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 GRENADA 000065 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CAR E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV EFIN SOCI GJ SUBJECT: NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS: ONE YEAR IN POWER ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Prime Minister Tillman Thomas told the nation on July 9 that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government completed its first year in office with great success. His speech skated over details and blamed the previous government and the current economic downturn for making it impossible to meet public expectations. The Prime Minister backpedaled on a promise to reshuffle his Cabinet he had made to Grenadian expatriates in New York in June on his way back to Grenada from China, saying only that changes might be made in the future. A few of the GOG's campaign promises have been met, but many more remain unfulfilled. The population is showing signs of impatience for the government to make good on its campaign promises to provide open, transparent governance and to bring investment to the island, creating much needed jobs. The opposition issued its own report card, describing what it called the "government's failings. IT'S MY PARTY ¶2. (SBU) The Prime Minister's July 9 twenty minute address to the nation was short on details as a stony-faced Thomas insisted that the government had just completed a very successful first year in office. The PM blamed the previous government for most of its problems. In an increasingly familiar refrain, Thomas condemned developed countries for mismanaging the world's financial affairs which he averred is also responsible for much of his government's inability to accomplish its goals. Notably absent from the speech was an expected announcement of a Cabinet reshuffle that the PM promised in a June visit to New York City. He alluded to possible future changes but insisted that none was currently needed. "SAME-O SAME-O" ¶3. (SBU) The National Democratic Congress (NDC) won the July 8, 2008 election taking 11 of the 15 seats in the lower house of Parliament. Voters appear to have opted for change without necessarily strongly supporting the NDC. The margin of victory was only 2,000 votes. Disappointment that the new crew's behavior is not fundamentally different from that of the old one has resulted in an increasing percentage of the population decrying the "same-o, same-o" behaviors. Public complaints that members of the Cabinet are more likely to be seen abroad than in their constituencies have multiplied along with accusations that the politicians "don't care about the people" now they are in power. The New National Party (NNP) government appointed twelve ministers. Upon taking power on June 9, 2008, the NDC appointed sixteen ministers and a non-minister/non-politician Attorney General. The NDC has provided jobs for the "boys", a practice the party had heavily criticized when it was in opposition. Grenadians expected that having more ministers would enable a more productive government. However, greater efficiency has not materialized. Since January, newspapers normally sympathetic to the NDC, e.g., Grenada Today, the Grenada Informer, and the Grenada Advocate have been running critical editorials and the number of negative letters to the papers signed by people willing to give their real names, has risen. ¶4. (SBU) There are a few successes. The Minister for Education took office with a free school book program ready to go. While it does not provide all the required texts, it does at least reduce the number of books families' must purchase outright (there is a small refundable fee to pay for administering the program). The Minister for Finance, after initially claiming the cupboard was bare and the ministry a wreck, has quietly continued policies put in place in late 2007 by the previous government to meet the country's IMF standby program requirements. The Minister's decision to delay implementation of a value added tax until 2010 and to limit the number of companies it will apply to was very popular with the public, but may come back to bite the revenue-strapped government later. Already suffering from the drop in revenues caused by the expiration on 12/31/08 of the five percent national reconstruction levy (NRL),the announcement of a restrictive application of VAT has led to speculation that some other tax will be required as well to keep the government afloat; an excise tax is under discussion. COMMENT ¶5. (SBU) Not unexpectedly, the PM's anniversary speech to the nation did not address the local perception that the government is struggling nor that it is no different from the former New National Party (NNP) government. It was left to opposition NNP leader and former Prime Minister Keith Mitchell to point out the problems that continue to face the country. A small core of die-hard NDC-ites (which includes a number of local journalists) still believes the country is moving in the right direction, but the public is clearly impatient with continued excuses. The two ministers who have been criticized the most are Minister for GRENADA 00000065 002 OF 002 Foreign Affairs and Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation, Peter David, and Minister for Health, Karl Hood. David is perceived as handling neither of his portfolios well, spending more time on the road than governing. Members of the local tourism association are openly calling for him to give more attention to tourism or give the ministry to someone who will. Hood, who has no health care background and appears to be mostly absent, is criticized for allowing the junior minister (who is a nurse by training but is not widely popular because of her hard-line revolutionary views) to be the public voice on health issues. ¶6. (SBU) Grenadians were waiting to hear how the PM would reorganize his Cabinet, based on his announcement in New York. Thomas' delegation stopped in New York City on its way home from China (the group also made a stop in London) to meet with NDC supporters. Grenada's political parties rely heavily on expatriates in the U.S., Canada, and the UK, as well as on countries like China, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, and Cuba to fund party activities. Since the expats provide so much of the money to keep the parties afloat, they believe they should have a large say in how the country is run. There reportedly has been a great deal of unhappiness among expats in NY with the NDC's inability to get its act together in its first year in office. The Prime Minister was apparently caught off guard by pointed media questioning and promised a reshuffle of his cabinet. Once back in Grenada, he seemed to regret making the promise. In a testy exchange with local media on upon his return to Grenada in late June, the normally phlegmatic Prime Minister shouted that it was his decision to make and no one else could tell him what to do. His July 9 address contained only a vague reference to possible change at some undefined point in the future. ¶7. (SBU) The NDC potentially has another four years before it needs to call elections, giving it time to get its act together. If party and government officials focus more on responding to local concerns, ensuring that ministers are not overwhelmed by their duties, and empowering the country's ambassadors and high commissioners to act rather than flying ministers around the world every few weeks, the Tillman Thomas government could improve its governance. MCISAAC