HISTORY reminds us that Adolf Hitler, whose face has become synonymous with evil, rose to power in free and fair democratic elections in 1933. Driven by fear and anxiety brought about by depressing economic conditions in the global economy and Germany, the people democratically elected this demagogue as Chancellor. It was the beginning of a vile reign that resulted in the execution of 5.5 million Jews and the Second World War.

One cannot ignore the fact that this monstrosity was unleashed to the world by the political system of democracy. It begs the question: how could the masses support unpalatable candidates who do not meet the most basic standards to govern?

Joseph Ellis, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning, ‘The Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation,’ stated that ‘Democracy meant mob rule. Democracy meant conceding the issue to people who don’t understand it.’ The latter part of this quote assists with the aims and objectives of this documentation. The masses, under the influence of tribalism or some other nefarious factor, might not grasp the dangers of giving their vote to certain representatives.

A detracting opinion would argue that it is the task of the opposing candidates to convince them. To that, I say it is difficult, nay, nearly impossible to exorcise the tribal spirit; your argument can be as solid as Mount Roraima and majestic as the Jaguar. Democracy quivers in the presence of racism and tribalism.

The founding fathers of the United States, the country that represents the great global exemplar of democracy were so fearful of the ordinary voters, they introduced a hybrid system to elect the President through the Electoral College. They knew the nature of democracy could produce the worst leaders if not carefully managed.

This brings me to the unforgiving and cruel nature of democracy as a political system in a plural society context. The great and well-intentioned leader with a decent, unblemished record who is also incorruptible and has the nation’s best interest at heart could lose in an open democratic process to leaders who are criminal, corrupt and downright unfit for any office. This occurrence obtains in a scenario where there are multiple races and there is one race that enjoys the majority. The leader with the less racial numbers could embark on the most grandiose transformative projects, the most unprecedented development in infrastructure and more.

When he faces the ballot box, he has to face the diabolical ethnological monster which invariably gets its way. Some may wish to argue, ‘you are too negative Mr. Austin.’ This ominous theory holds true when we examine the electoral numbers of numerous communities in the recently held local government elections. Having received asphalted roads and lights for the first time in their existence, some of these communities still voted in favour of a party that denied them these basic things for decades. Desmond Hoyte, arguably the most astute national leader this country has produced, had 600 transformative developmental projects under the Economic Recovery Programme (ERP) ready to be executed in Guyana and the good gentlemen lost the elections in 1992.

Now, one can argue about numerous variables that can lead to that conclusion; but one would be hard pressed to show that these voters were not driven by phylogenic considerations. Hothead rabble-rousers in countries around the world are being swept to power by appealing to the basest emotions of the masses, dog-whistling messages of racial fears to get the electoral cake. The Western Liberal order with democracy being the nucleus of that system has never been under so much threat.

Winston Churchill once remarked, ‘the best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter.’ This is a reference to the fact that the blind loyalist, the unthinking voter or the ethnic automaton will have little or no grasp of the issue or a party’s manifesto; but he participates in the democratic process guided by kith-and-kin deliberations. After all the hard work and honourable intentions to do good for your country and its people, you can fall victim to the ethnic monster; and this makes democracy, at times, very cruel.