Trust in government is a powerful tool for the successful outcome of crises.
Sadly, what we have been witnessing in recent weeks is a clear and persistent erosion of trust in our government, more specifically the competent authority, in the fight against COVID-19.
A recent article in The (UK) Guardian’s international edition highlighted that university researchers found that in addition to compliance with basic hygiene practices, trust in authorities was at nearly 100 percent as New Zealand battled the pandemic.
In the article, Dr. Jagadish Thaker, a senior lecturer at the school of communication, journalism & marketing at Massey University, which conducted the research, stated, “We came together as a country, in part because we believed in our political and health experts to deliver and they did.
“Simple, clear health messages, communicated with kindness and empathy, resonate with people, even when they are demanding tough changes.”
New Zealand, an island nation in the south Pacific Ocean with a population of 4.8 million, recorded 22 deaths and 1,500 infections after strict border controls and a nationwide lockdown on March 25.
The country has eased restrictions and has, for the most part, returned to normal.
The Guardian article noted that following the lockdown, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern achieved the highest approval ratings of her three-year cycle and became the most popular leader in a century.
That article also stated that epidemiologists working on managing the spread of the disease in New Zealand singled her out for praise.
“The brilliant, decisive and humane leadership of Ardern was instrumental in New Zealand’s rapid change in direction with its response to COVID-19 and the remarkably efficient implementation of the elimination strategy,” wrote Otago university epidemiologists Michael Baker and Nick Wilson.
The report found that Ardern and director general of health, Dr. Ashley Bloomfield, were given nearly perfect marks by respondents for their communication style and leadership throughout the crisis, while the general dissemination of information also came in for “high praise”.
“When political will backs science, we save lives,” Thaker said in The Guardian article.
The findings are instructive as Bahamian leaders struggle to implement an effective response to the pandemic.
In implementing that response — which we acknowledge requires adjustments given dynamic circumstances — the competent authority should be mindful that getting buy-in from those impacted by his decisions is crucial in positively impacting behaviors.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) notes that “trust is the foundation upon which the legitimacy of public institutions is built and is crucial for maintaining social cohesion”.
It adds, “Trust is important for the success of a wide range of public policies that depend on behavioral responses from the public. For example, public trust leads to greater compliance with regulations and the tax system.
“…During all stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, including containment, mitigation and recovery, trust in public institutions is vital for governments’ ability to respond rapidly and to secure citizen support.
“Government’s ability to harness public trust as a force out of the crisis will be crucial for planning and implementing an inclusive recovery from the COVID-19 emergency.”
Shattered confidence
The Bahamas has seen 447 COVID-19 cases since its first case in March — the vast majority of those cases being reported after the country’s borders fully reopened on July 1.
Instead of moves to build trust, Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis — whom we are certain wants a successful outcome to the current crisis, not unlike the rest of us — has made a series of decisions that have shattered confidence in his ability to lead us to the other side of this pandemic.
Publicly and privately, many Bahamians who initially had faith in his crisis management ability are expressing dissatisfaction over the haphazard manner in which decisions are being made, and the uneven application of policies.
Reasonable citizens and residents understand the value of social distancing, lockdowns and other protocols necessary to combat COVID-19.
But when decision-making is ill-thought-out, when data is withheld from the public and when leaders show a lack of sensitivity in communicating the message, the erosion of trust deepens.
An unfortunate theme that has emerged in the current crisis is that there is not one set of rules for all.
This has significantly impacted buy-in from members of the public and has left many feeling like second-class citizens in their country.
Earlier on in the pandemic response, the landing of a group of permanent residents who were green-lighted to quarantine at home even as returning Bahamians were being told they had to quarantine at a government approved facility guarded by defense force officers, led to the resignation of Dr. Duane Sands, a competent minister of health.
We all know that story well. Sands owned the decision, saying the permanent residents were exempted from the stated protocol because they had donated critically needed swabs for COVID-19 testing.
Around the same time, wealthy Lyford Cay resident Betsy Dingman also got approval to land and quarantine at home.
These instances were juxtaposed in national newspapers against stories of ordinary Bahamians being made to quarantine at SuperClubs Breezes hotel.
During the emergency period, more than 1,000 people were charged before the courts with violating the emergency orders. Over-the-Hill residents who were reportedly collecting water from government standpipes and others were taken to court. A teen was fined $700 for selling coconuts on the side of a New Providence street in breach of the national curfew and the emergency orders.
When Over-the-Hill liquor stores and liquor stores in other areas of the island were prevented from selling alcohol because of the emergency order, a drive out west got you all the liquor you could afford at a nice boutique hotel.
While some restaurants were allowed to open to curbside business, restaurants at Arawak Cay and Potter’s Cay were barred from doing so. With the current surge being experienced, the competent authority has closed those locations once again, as opposed to allowing them to conduct curbside business like other restaurants.
Small businesses operating from those sites have had to swallow significant financial losses.
More recently, the competent authority, without any notice, announced on Friday evening that weddings and funerals could not take place with more than five people. The announcement created undue distress for some.
Adding insult to an already bad situation, it emerged on Sunday that an American couple received permission from the competent authority to have their Harbour Island destination wedding on Saturday. The Harbour Island wedding party, meanwhile, was seen in photographs posing on the beach as a large group having a whale of a time.
The rest of us were locked down in our homes with the threat of prosecution if we exercised in our own yards beyond 5 p.m. While we could not exercise in our yards after 5 p.m., we could at least go to the grocery stores up to 6 p.m. — an inconsistent policy.
While we could not legally go to the beach on New Providence, Paradise Island, surrounding cays and Grand Bahama last week, we were still allowed to go to the gym. Under new orders, gyms are now closed.
Insult
Trust evaporates when the Bahamian people’s intelligence is insulted by their leaders and when we are clearly disrespected by those who often demonstrate little regard for their obligation to be accountable to the people.
On July 19, the competent authority announced that commercial travel from everywhere except Canada, the UK and the EU was being banned. The announcement was carried internationally. The message went out that The Bahamas was closed to American citizens.
Tourism officials, who we understand were caught off guard by the announcement, were left scrambling to craft new messaging and to protect the country’s reputation.
Three days later when he spoke in the House of Assembly, the prime minister did not see it necessary to point out that new emergency orders being tabled actually reflected a reversal of his decision in regard to the border closure.
We understand that key tourism officials were again taken by surprise.
After a Nassau Guardian editorial last Friday pointed out that the information in the emergency order was materially different from what the prime minister had announced, the attorney general released a statement saying The Bahamas would have been in violation of the Chicago Convention, a treaty which establishes the rules for international aviation.
Mind you, The Bahamas previously banned travel from the UK, EU, Ireland, China, South Korea, Iran and Italy during the COVID crisis.
The AG argued that The Bahamas would be in violation of the treaty if it discriminates against certain commercial airlines.
The same treaty that the competent authority and the AG hid behind as justification for the reversed position states that the provisions of the treaty “shall not affect the freedom of action” of a country that declares a state of national emergency.
In any event, there is no treaty that could trump the constitution. It is the supreme law.
Bahamians know that.
Fidelity
Quietly, some close to Minnis are starting to whisper about these embarrassing scenarios that are playing out and the damage being caused to the administration’s brand, and to Minnis’ personal brand; goodwill is being depleted; more and more people are being turned off.
While the prime minister as the competent authority is vested with absolute authority to make decisions, he should use that power responsibly.
In Parliament last week, he made a stunning statement that should never be uttered by any democratic prime minister: “Governments will be placed in situations where at some point in time they would have to make what they call discriminatory or unconstitutional decisions against their people in the interest of the advancement of their nation.”
No competent authority should ever let such a foolish and irresponsible statement slip from his lips, and in the halls of Parliament no less. There is no situation that could arise that would give any leader of The Bahamas justification to make unconstitutional decisions. The constitution provides a process by which national crises are to be addressed.
Minnis and every Bahamian prime minister to come after him ought to demonstrate full devotion to that process.
The attorney general, meanwhile, ought to also ensure the timely gazetting of emergency orders. It is unacceptable that we would supposedly be under new lockdowns, curfews and other restrictive measures without any actual orders being released ahead of time.
We woke up on Saturday morning, supposedly under a weekend lockdown, but there had not yet been any order to that effect.
The prime minister’s words are now the law — a point we made to police officials as they warned the public on Monday to adhere to the new 7 p.m. lockdown without any gazetted order yet released.
What absurdity!
It is quite apparent that the competent authority needs to do a better job at demonstrating competence for the job.
As we appear to be a long way off from returning to a pre-pandemic normal, Minnis and his government should seek to repair tattered trust.
In its “trust in government” statement, the OECD addressed factors that drive public trust in government.
It said, “OECD evidence shows that high levels of integrity, fairness and openness of institutions are strong predictors of public trust. Similarly, government’s competence — its responsiveness and reliability in delivering public services and anticipating new needs — are crucial for boosting trust in institutions.”
The post Trust in the time of crisis appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.
source https://thenassauguardian.com/2020/07/29/trust-in-the-time-of-crisis/
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