DURING THIS THE year of our 50th anniversary of Independence it is important that we properly understand what is meant by the fact and consequences of that momentous event. However, in recent times it has become clear that there needs to be a widespread and informed educational programme about the meaning and context of the fundamental document which grounds our Independence and provides the essential framework for our continuing system of governance.
Hardly a day passes without some news item that touches and concerns our freedoms and our very lives and relates back to the Independence Constitution, which we adopted on November 30, 1966, but an uninformed public opinion runs riot, false statements masquerade as truth, and the cornerstones of an orderly and peaceful society become undermined.
Within the past month we have read headlines about the Auditor General’s Reports and the Public Accounts Committee, followed by the debate on Biometrics Regulations and the story of a case languishing in the corridors of the criminal justice system for some 14 years before being dismissed; and last but by no means least the question of lengthy periods spent on remand by some accused resulting in bail being granted even in cases where the charge is murder.
We all have an interest in these issues but public opinion, which is the ultimate protector of the public interest, is so badly informed that the issues become a nine days’ wonder until the next time.
If the Constitution is the very bedrock of our Independence, then it has also to be recognised that respect for that document and what it means and for our system of governance counts for little or nothing unless there is an abiding public confidence in the Constitution and its institutions.
And such abiding confidence cannot be generated or maintained in a tsunami of widespread ignorance or innocence. Hence the need for public education on what the Constitution means and how it fosters and protects our freedoms and our way of life.
For example, one of the Constitution’s floorboard principles is the independence of the judiciary, which is supported by the separation of powers. These are principles which seek to insulate the judges and magistrates from political interference, and they are key to separating dictatorships from democracies.Â
So too does the effective guarantee of our freedoms as set out in the Human Rights chapter of our Constitution, and this is why the debate over the Biometric Regulations is so important.
The issue of bail for an accused could hardly be more relevant to our notions of freedom for when the state brings a charge against an accused and cannot dispose of the trial within a reasonable time, constitutional issues of high import, as well as the welfare of the accused are in play. That is why public comment comparing such cases one with the other is fraught with danger, especially when made by public figures.
In all of these matters public opinion is the ultimate tiebreaker since all state power is subject to the will and power and habitual obedience of the people. That is why we need responsible debate by an informed public.
At all times, and particularly now, we have to ensure that the pillars of our peace, order and good governance are not destroyed on the altar of an uninformed public opinion, but are supported by honest and informed debate. And time is critical.
