By Tony Deyal
On June 13, 2020, just over five years ago, I wrote a column about the politics of that time, especially about what I called “Trump and follow suit.” I named it, “Poli-ticks, Poli-tricks and Poli-dicks.” Given the present addition, I must rename the article.
After all, with Trinidad and Tobago experiencing a change in political leadership after ten years, and in a very short time, some before and several others after, have jumped the train or are close to getting ready to rumble, especially Anguilla, Belize, Guyana and Jamaica. I see it as more of a four-some than a tree-trump. In fact, with demands and pressure on both sides, it is more like a “force-some”.
This is why my new series is “Poli-ticks, Poli-tricks, Poli-dicks (and, with all the sharpness and money passing), “Poli-slicks”. This means a “clever” person. Initially, “politics” was about the processes of making government decisions, including policy formulation, elections, and the exercise of power. It was the formal structure and practices of governing. But very quickly it changed for the worse.
First, there was “Poli-tricks.” It was ‘coined’ by the Jamaicans and added to the second Oxford Dictionary of Modern Slang. According to the experts, Poli-tricks is more blatant, even unethical, manipulative practices used in politics. It included, “voter suppression” or attempts to make it more difficult for certain groups to vote, such as intentionally creating long lines or limiting polling locations; “negative campaigning” which is about attacking opponents rather than promoting your own ideas and recommendations for the greatest; “October Surprise” which is releasing damaging information about an opponent close to an election, to limit his ability to respond; and “misinformation and propaganda” or “spreading false or misleading information to influence public opinion.”
This is one reason why, in several parts of the world, but increasingly in the Caribbean, “politics” from the start was based on two Latin words, “Poli” meaning “many” and “tics” which is “bloodsucking creatures.”
Then there are “poli-slicks”. They are not only the politicians, especially those like Trump. He almost always tries and gets a more subtle and sophisticated approach to manipulation, often involving skilful use of language and (PR) public relations. This is why so many people see Trump as a PR genius – harnessing the power of earned media, knowing how to turn bad press around, and using language everyone understands.
In addition, the slicksters like Trump have “spin”. This is a much more subtle and sophisticated approach to manipulation, often involving fancy language and public relations. Then there is “jargon and technical language” which is to present information in a way that favours a particular interpretation, often by selectively highlighting some facts only, or using emotionally charged and “go after them” language.
Next is “using jargon and technical language” to confuse the audience with very complex and hard-to-understand information, so you feel they are bright leaders and not some “slicks” obscuring the true meaning of what was said. Then comes “appeal to emotions”. This is about using ‘rhetoric’ (trying to persuade people) and storytelling or telling tales to bypass the things people really should know, instead of connecting them with pure feelings that don’t add food to the table. Most of all, “dog whistles” by using ‘coded’ words and phrases that have hidden meanings to get one group without losing the others.
In addition, or call it addiction, in “October Surprise” there are some dirty tricks we must expect in every country with a race, especially those with politics. There are ‘whisper campaigns’ full of rumours and innuendos to damage reputations or get people to refuse to help the other side.
Next is ‘push pulling’. This is when you pretend to be sharing a legitimate poll, and it really is false information. Following this is ‘unfair competition’, which happens when the rich candidates hire almost all the political consultants to keep them from working for the other party.
Last is ‘interference with the electoral process’ or, in other words, providing obstacles to cause others to vote by destroying mail-in ballots, creating traffic jams on election day, and intimidating the voters.
Just to put where I’m coming from in the future, weekly articles about the tricks, ticks, dicks and slicks, let’s consider what we in the West Indies must understand or stay far from. A massive and major one is anything in the West Indies (W.I.), places, parties and people, especially people when things get hot.
According to some experts and people who get caught in, or by, the act, or run like heck for cover, what is behind it all are the cost of living, dealing with crime, and what is called “ethnic tensions”; something that is not associated only with Indians vs Africans or just-in a few of the countries. In all the countries, once there are two-party politics only, there will be what we call “pressure” and worse-going after one another with guns, stones and even “big sticks.”
Two examples of what happened in WI political “meet, great and mash up teeth” are said to have been in Trinidad and Tobago where the 2025 election was described as unpredictable, due to issues like rising crime, trade tariffs, the cost of living, and Guyana when the 2020 election was marked by legal challenges and disputes over the results, highlighting the importance of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in resolving electoral disputes.
So, where do we go from here? Hide until the party is over, and you join the winner? One major course is what is considered “corruption in the Caribbean”. It comes from: 1). Social acceptability of corrupt practices; 2). Perceptions of corruption involving public officials and politicians; 3). Briber victimisation within the private sector; 4). Electronic manipulation (and woman, too, some say).
Presenter Cynthia Barrow-Giles, UWI, added among “Worrying Consequences” two very vital ones-some parties being easily captured by wealthy lobbies, and the possibility that public policy may be distorted from the public interest in exchange for campaign contributions, whether by national or international concerns. Or just the politicians fighting one another to win the crown, gown and own the town.
But in Trinidad and the rest of the Caribbean, regardless of who is King or Queen, they are more like hide, seek and peek. That is because the list doesn’t miss or mistake, and it just keeps on going and going … petty crime and not at all pretty; terrorism, with groups with terrorist connections, fraud, from credit and debit cards and even your cent and penny, and fraudulent police officers officiating …
*Tony says that police aren’t just slicks, they’re dicks.
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