If there is one positive coming out of the Government's amendment of the 1976 Republican Constitution to facilitate the recall of Members of Parliament, term limits for prime ministers and controversial runoff proposal, it is the fact that the legislation has galvanised a national debate on T&T's existing constitutional arrangements.
Such debate is good for the country's democracy because it indicates that there are citizens who are concerned enough about the rules that govern the running of the nation that they are willing to write letters to the editor, post blogs on Web sites and lobby their friends and neighbours on the issue.
This passionate contestation of ideas both for and against the Constitution Amendment Bill will, hopefully, deepen the understanding of the concepts in the legislation as people read, view, listen and respond to the points that have been raised or challenged.It is clear, as well, that the voices of the people has had an impact on those who have been charged with not simply making laws, but also shaping it to take account of the palpable concerns raised in the national debate.
That the Government was forced to make changes to the legislation to facilitate its passage on Thursday night is an indication that the wider national debate had an impact on the Senate deliberations.Despite the bill's passage on Thursday, the discussions on the Constitution that are continuing outside Parliament may be as important as those that took place within it.
This is because, as the Prime Minister herself acknowledged in piloting the legislation in the Senate on Tuesday, at some point in the next 12 months, the people will get an opportunity to stain their fingers in judgment of Ms Persad-Bissessar's stewardship of the country since May 2010.The ability of a population to choose those who lead them is the ultimate safeguard to the continuation of democracy.
The demonstrations both for and against the legislation outside Parliament on Tuesday, then, are a signal that democracy remains alive and well in T&T.The demonstrations seemed to be indicative of an ethnic divide on the bill as many of those for and against it appear to have taken their positions based on traditional party alignments–many without fully understanding the basis for either support or protest.Some analysts may perceive this development to be potentially divisive for the country.
But what is consoling for T&T's future stability is that both major political parties have realised that they cannot win power without attracting significant cross-ethnic support. And this is particularly so in some of the so-called marginal constituencies.It is clear that the balance of electoral power in T&T lies with the educated, undecided, mainly middle-income voters who are connected to each other and the world by social media.
This group has largely transcended the prison of ethnic-based voting and is scrutinising the platforms, manifestos, ideas and actions of the two major parties like never before.These floating voters–who are more likely to vote on issues than their parents–may be in a minority of the country's total voter base. They may, however, constitute a large enough block of votes in the marginal constituencies to determine the outcome of the 2015 elections.
How the events of the last month have played in the hearts and minds of this block of voters is difficult to determine. But what is certain is that the party they choose to vote for at the upcoming national election will form the next government.The political party that ignores this new force in local politics does so at its own peril.