I could have sworn I heard people say Andrew Holness was bright. I thought people saw him as the future of Jamaican politics. As far as I am concerned, the jury is still out on that one.

The leader of the Opposition this week called for the minister of education, Ronnie Thwaites, to resign because the latter broke ranks with his party over the imposition of the latest draconian but arguably necessary tax regime. "It is not sufficient to put on your clergy collar and speak with your clergy hat and decry your Government and separate yourself from the decision. It is not enough and nobody is fooled by that," Holness said. "If you think that the principle is flawed, then you must resign."

Is this the Andrew Holness that is the future of politics in this country? You have got to be kidding me?

extremely tough

Mr Holness if you are reading this, you should be praising Mr Thwaites for his stance. Had more politicians exhibited similar behavior during the last 50 years, 40 of them extremely tough, this country would have been a much better place. Had some politicians decided to vote against the short-sighted and economically disastrous policies imposed upon the people of this country by their respective parties, perhaps Jamaica would be the ideal place to live and not one of the worst hit economies in this ongoing worldwide recession.

No Mr Holness, Mr Thwaites did the right thing in that even if his reasons are flawed, his conscience did not allow him to tow a party line that results in life being harder for the millions of poor in this country, poor because politicians voted along party lines as opposed to what they knew was right.

Politics in this country has become a dirty word because people believe that politicians tend to look out for the best interest of their friends and family and not for the people who they are supposed to be serving. For the better part of 50 years, they have voted almost exclusively along party lines and where has that got us - deeply mired in debt and overrun by criminals. As I have repeatedly said in this space, to do the same thing over and over again yet expect a different result is characterised as insanity.

absolute rubbish

Mr Holness makes the case that Mr Thwaites should stand ground with his party as part of a collective responsibility, absolute rubbish. So if the PNP decides collectively that they are going to walk around naked, every member should join in?

This is madness. Someone once said that the majority may sometimes mean that all the fools are on the same side. Clearly, this is the position that Mr Thwaites spoke from. Mr Holness may not agree but sometimes we have to agree to disagree.

Going forward for the next 50 years as an independent nation, we need to see more people follow Mr Thwaites' lead. Political representatives need to vote on what their conscience tells them as they do their best to represent the people who put them where they are. Only fools toe the line even though they know that disaster lies ahead.

Andrew Holness has been touted as bright and the future of Jamaican politics. All I will say to that is that in life everything is relative.

Is this the Andrew Holness that is the future of politics in this country? You have got to be kidding me?