Cabinet size should not be merely for the sake of numbers, says ‘Butch’ Stewart(WHY THESE PEOPLE DICTATE TO YOUR GOVERNMENT)

Cabinet size should not be merely for the sake of numbers, says ‘Butch’ Stewart

STEWART... we don’t have the structures and systems in place to manage Jamaica with a few Cabinet ministers

As debate rages about what size the Andrew Holness Cabinet should be, Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart has cautioned against having a small Cabinet “merely for the sake of numbers”.

Stewart, Jamaica and the Caribbean’s leading hotelier, said yesterday that given the range and complexity of the country’s problems no one should imagine that it could be managed by a small Cabinet.

“Every time that a new Government is being selected the usual argument about having a small Cabinet resurfaces. Having a small Cabinet for the sake of numbers makes very little sense when the enormity of our problems demand the fullest application of the limited leadership talent pool that we have as a country,” argued Stewart.

He was speaking in an interview with the Jamaica Observer ahead of the selection of a new Cabinet by Prime Minister Holness, who is expected to announce the members imminently.Stewart, who is chairman of the ATL/Sandals Group which includes the Jamaica Observer, said a Cabinet was akin to a board of directors in which the members are usually selected for the skill they bring to the needs of the company.



“I think that most well-thinking persons know that in Jamaica’s case, we must run our country as we would a serious business, with the Cabinet acting as the board of directors under the chairmanship of Mr Holness,” he suggested.

It is not a new position for Stewart who took a similar stance when Portia Simpson Miller named a 20-member Cabinet in January 2012 and before her Bruce Golding appointed what was then heavily criticised as a too-large 18-member Cabinet in September 2007.

“Too few hands or minds cannot cut it. We don’t have the structures and systems in place to manage Jamaica with a few Cabinet ministers. There is a high level of indiscipline and circumventing of the system here,” Stewart said in 2012.

“The country is still in many ways underdeveloped. Our bureaucracy is overarching and overreaching, to the extent that it is difficult getting things done. It needs a great deal of attention.

“A small Cabinet cannot adequately handle all the needs. We run the risk of overwhelming them if they are too few. In a first world country, the discipline, organisation and systems in place promote accountability and the ability to supervise more efficiently. In that case, it is easier to run with a smaller Cabinet.

“What is eminently more sensible in determining the size of a Cabinet is looking at the workload the members have to carry and the skill sets necessary, against the background of how well organised our governance structure is. This is even more critical at this time when the world economy is still struggling,” said Stewart.

The hotel mogul said yesterday that “I like the idea of succession planning because this is something we don’t do enough of as a country, whether in the public or private sector”.

“The emphasis on achieving a proper mix of youth and experience is always a great thing. There are many young, inexperienced members of parliament in the new JLP team and they should be placed in an advisory position as junior ministers or parliamentary secretaries where possible to begin their training for the future,” Stewart added.