Be my Valentine Sheron

Maybe, just maybe de PM is not conscious of de fact dat his Press Conferences are not only long, but all about he, himself and Ralph alone. It is like ah Wuk trying to listen him thru. He goes on and on foh hours at times, and when he is asked a question about Owia foh example, he will begin his answer at Fitz Hughes, wid deviate-shuns and stops along de way, at times not giving ah straight forward answer.. And maybe, just maybe our PM is not conscious also, dat ah number of persons have long ceased to watch SVG TV Evening News, because one, the top stories, sometimes four straight items are about him; and two, excerpts of his address along wid his picture are always dey foh de duration of de news item. SVG TV News was like ah preview to de Go-venom-mint owned and bull-dozed API.{{more}}

One ah de unfortunate thing about leaders wid “Dictate-ah tendency,” is dat dey become “Emperors in birth suites” correct-shun, dey are made into “Emperors in birth suites” by dey boot-lickers. If only de PM had ah Sheron Garraway as an Add-vice-Sir, she would ah whispered to him as she so eloquently did at de Press Conference, dat regardless to how and what he might think of himself, dat our noble PM has long “waste-down” himself and have become like “ah bowl ah corn meal porridge foh tea, breakfast and dinner, every day ah de week!”

De song says: “Women do get wary wearing dat same ole shabby dress,” in de PM’s case, people have become tired of de same “ole Wretch-trick” after ah while. And dat is why he stunned so many people wid his unwarranted verbal attack, and ah don’t mean de usual “cry cry baby come-plain,” it was an explose-shun of compressed frustrate-shun on SVG TV via Reporter, Sheron Garraway at Monday’s Press Conference. People have long concluded dat de “bed-fell-low relationship” between de PM and SVG TV is ah turn off.

So ah wish to join Lie-Za and Big-Up Sheron on three counts. She was once ah junior reporter at Searchlight (strong-headed) but has grown, and my Valentine Gift to her foh being de First Ever Reporter to stand up to any Prime Minister and tell him to his face : “I do not agree wid yuh Mr Prime Minister! wid due respect!”

My Second count has to do wid our woe-men when dey stand up foh dey Rights, we as real men must stand up wid and for dem! Foh too long every Tom Dick’n’Harry getting away wid de false notion dat woe-men is dirt foh man to trample pon. Our woe-men getting battered, bruised and abused physically and mentally, not to men-shun Rape, and our silence is breaking ear drums! Ah don’t want to go down in de gutter to talk bout woe-men ah know who have been destroyed, cut-down by so-called “Big men,” pull-it-tak-all and otherwise; but de Walls of Jericho are crumbling slowly and surely. It will All come out, if ah dead, Ants go bring de news.

Apart from de late Nora Peacock, former Editor of de Vincentian, ah trying to remember de last time we have had ah female Newsperson who “stand up foh de truth” against ah mighty Fear-owe! How well ah remember Nora refusing to disclose de identity of GCH Thomas, an Author and ah Columnist in de Vincentian wid pen name sorry, “nom de plume” “Quo Vadis;” he was demon-eyes and flushed out of hiding by Labour den in Goven-mint, de chief ass-ah-sin is still alive but has since degenerated to pity and compassion. Both Nora and Thomas were dragged before de High Court “foh writing Truth!” My Third Count is de manner in which Sheron conducted herself during de strong exchanges wid de PM. She maintained her cool, was polite but firm; she showed no disrespect or rudeness as in rudeness as she stood her ground. Surely dat ought to have been ah learning experience foh young, up and coming Journalists, who might have been timid scared to hold ah principle during ah Press Conference wid any Pull-it-to-kill official PM. Awe-position Leader, Minister or whoever.

Sheron reminds me of an Administrative Head under whom I worked at PWD Stores. Those were de early days of de break-down of de Public Service by politicians in office, way senior public servants uses to lick balls to get promotion. But dis Storekeeper was honest, hardworking and straight-forward when it came to Government building materials and trucking. He had several clashes wid Mammy Joshua whom he would not allow to tell him how to do his wuk. As ah matter ah fact he was sent to PWD Stores on punishment, an ole upstart dey called him, but like his Grand-daughter he stood firm, and finally he was appointed to de level of Permanent Secretary. His name was Ormond “OG” Garraway, de grand-father of Sheron Garraway. Ole people say when mango drop off tree dey don’t roll too far from de root! Nuff Respect Sharon. And wid dat is gone ah gone again.

One Love Bassy.

Bassy Alexander is a land surveyor, folklorist and social commentator.