Comments on: I voted today…

By: Lilandra, Empress of Chocolate and Envious Sister

Lilandra, Empress of Chocolate and Envious Sister — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 01:51:44 +0000

chennette can’t access wordpress.com atm
she can blog from flickr…

By: Mani

Mani — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 00:12:00 +0000

…and by the way, enjoy your vacation.

By: Mani

Mani — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 22:53:20 +0000

Yay, Chennette! At least we did our part.

Lilandra, doh give up on we yet nah gyul, lol.

But I agree with Ian and Mustapha who says that 140,000 people in T&T are unrepresented. There has to be something wrong with the system when that happens.

By: Cranky Putz

Cranky Putz — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 16:21:19 +0000

Doing your part is the first step to change…even if the change is slow to come.

By: Mustapha

Mustapha — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 16:29:54 +0000

Chage the system of voting now!!!!!! Implement a PR system because in my view a party(COP) who get 140,000 plus votes deserves to get a chance to represent the people who voted for them. That is 9 seats in parliament. If we had a PR system then the PNM would have gotten 19 seats the UNC 13 seats. Then a coalition government would be formed bet the UNC and the COP since thier manifestoes seem to be the same and the PNM would be in opposition. Just my view

By: Global Voices Online » Trinidad and Tobago: Election results

Global Voices Online » Trinidad and Tobago: Election results — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 01:58:51 +0000

[...] Haveworld captioned his photo. “I voted. Did you?” asked The Manicou Report. “I've done my part,” said Lifespan of a Chennette. “My part in this first stage anyway.” Georgia Popplewell [...]

By: Ian

Ian — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 18:26:56 +0000

Sadly, we can’t expect the politicians who benefit from the system to change it. The PNM got 63% of the seats with 43% of the vote. The UNC got 37% of the seats with 19% of the vote. That’s a 20-point benefit for the PNM, 18-point benefit for the UNC.

I think the best we can hope for is a mixed system, like what the Wooding Commission proposed. If one house is elected first-past-the-post and the other is elected PR, we might have the grounds to build a better system. But even that we aren’t going to get unless the politicians want something from the “third force”. I think there are two ways forward – one is for COP to try to build a presence through local government (though even there, it’s going to have problems) while waiting for Panday to retire or die, and see what sort of arrangement they can make with his successor, and the other is to actually build grassroots support for the idea of constitutional change. Maybe if people marching round the Red House for constitutional change politicians might notice.

By: chennette

chennette — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 15:21:16 +0000

I know – I just realised how many votes they DID get and it is so frustrating. Mostly because this was a problem that was recognised a long time ago, and even in the last election, and yet we didn’t change the system. And for that, I blame both the Government AND the Opposition. Because it would have taken them both to achieve the change, and any elected representative to initiate the process.

By: Ian

Ian — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 13:52:03 +0000

Apparently COP got more votes than UNC. It’s a repeat of the ONR in 1981. The problem is the electoral system. If a quarter of the population votes for a party that can’t even get one seat in 41, then the system doesn’t work. Democracy is about electing a government that does the will of the people. If the second largest bloc isn’t represented, then the electoral system fails us. The problem isn’t whether COP split UNC vote, or UNC split COP vote. People should be able to vote for anyone credible and not have to worry about strategic voting.

By: Trini bloggers are voting « Further thoughts

Trini bloggers are voting « Further thoughts — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 13:41:56 +0000

[...] Lifespan of a Chennette [...]