Its been quite challenging to put some order to the amount of things that has happened this week, but there is one thing that holds sure, and that is the fact that it has been a pretty interesting time. I have already spoken about the lock down that happened when news dropped of the possibility of the extradition request being signed. Now I have to focus on the Prime Ministers address to the nation, which confirmed those rumors. At 8:30pm on monday night it was possibly the first time in many years that a national address by the prime minister was watched by so many Jamaicans, I am willing to wager that everybody with a tv eagerly watched to hear what would have been said, as speculation rose that the PM was about to resign.

In the early stages of the speech (text of the speech available here) however, I soon realized that all that I had hoped for had in fact been lost as it became apparent that this speech was another political speech about nothing at all. I could detect the miles of rubbish that was about to come from the line where he said "I have asked God to guide me in my response and the decisions I must make". This line is the newest tool used by politicians around the world when they need justification for some action that they know they cannot properly rationalize with the people. The name God is constantly being used in the wrong light by these people to fool a bunch of people who will blindly follow their deity as long as they believe he is behind someone's decisions, however the people who read between the lines more easily can call the speaker for what they really are saying:

However I decided to listen on, listen to the quagmire of garbage that was bound to eventually come out of the PM's mouth. The first and only issue that the PM really touched on was the extradition. He decided that he was going to sign the extradition request and then stated that "the government has never refused... never refused... the request for the extradition of Christopher Coke. It has simply asked the US authorities to provide additional information", yea... right.

Anyway this was to be expected after all the country was fedup with this issue going on for so long. Too many people had become affected by the issue as the US began denying many Jamaicans entry. So of course the request was to be granted else he would probably be the first Jamaican PM that would be put publicly lynched. But after he confirms that he will in fact be granting the extradition request, Golding then went on into a discussion that to be honest can be seen as nothing more than a drunken tyrade.

This is why I came to the conclusion that Golding is simply pulling the wool over Jamaican's eyes. He did not speak about the issues we want to hear, he did not resign from his post even though its obvious he has lost the trust of the entire country, he did not speak at any depth about the Mannatt issue... and then for the last 5-10 minutes of the speech in an attempt to further confuse the people he again reiterates those promises he made during his campaign for PM, more political promises and just the usual garbage that nobody really wanted to hear.

And then there is the concluding paragraph:

The nation's business cannot continue to be disrupted and distracted by the ordeal of the last several months. We must put it behind us and move on and I hope that after tonight we will be able to do so. And we must do so with humility. Our lapses at times into what comes across as arrogance and disrespect must not be allowed to happen, for we are the servants of the people. Again, I express my regret to those who were offended.

So we must not be distracted by the lies he has told, or his clear violations of our trust and as a matter of fact the rule of law. No we are to "put it behind us on move on". Such garbage I never thought I would hear. It really disturbs me that this is the method chosen by the PM to gain the forgiveness of the country.

Well Mr. Golding, I am neither pleased, nor fooled