As seen, the front page of this week’s edition of The Anguillian is littered with the faces of all twenty candidates contesting the General Election on Monday, February 15. It is really nothing new on paper, since they all appear across the island in one form or the other. The only exception is that, when they are grouped together, they form an archival cluster for a chapter on politics in Anguilla.

Voting for a candidate or political party of one’s choosing, is one of the most democratic and satisfying civic responsibilities and privileges a person can enjoy. In a small society, like Anguilla, where everybody knows each other, it is even a more ideal situation in that the voter can, with a greater degree of certainty, cast his or her ballot with ease of choice and hope.

The past several weeks of campaigning not only have been most revealing about how low, mudslinging and tarnishing such a period can be, but has probably turned off a number of people who have been complaining about it. Yet this is no excuse for not voting. The truth is that this is the most keenly contested General Election in Anguilla. Aside from the detractions of the campaigning, there is a great deal of excitement and involvement among the supporters of the candidates of the three parties and the three independents, not seen in Anguilla previously. The very atmosphere over the island feels unprecedentedly politically charged.

Leadership in Anguilla has become a big issue these days unlike the early days following the 1967 Revolution when some persons who stood for election found themselves unrivaled and were therefore elected unopposed. In these times, when entry into politics appears to be a way of comfortable living in Anguilla for some, the race to be in Government has become fiercely competitive. One only has to look at the current number of parties and candidates to see this and to listen to the din of voices on the campaign trail and over the airwaves.

Yet with the glory of attaining elective office, comes the burden of governing and responsibility. This is both a serious and sacred trust. It means that those who will eventually be voted in office, to represent the people, must be prepared to work assiduously and honestly for their interest and welfare. Since this is their remit, the electorate must ensure that those they choose to run the affairs of Anguilla and its people must be men and women who have the capacity to lead and function, and who are patently aware that it is “more blessed to give than to receive” in terms of output of service. And so it is a double responsibility shared by the electorate and the elected.

The tasks ahead in the governance of Anguilla are not easy to surmount. All the machinery is in place for Monday’s election. It is now up to the people to cast their ballots. May they do so with wisdom, confidence and faith – and in large numbers. GO OUT AND VOTE.

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