After a quarter-century in power, the ULP was swept away in a historic 14-1 landslide victory for the NDP.
An in-depth conversation on HOT97 with the new Prime Minister, Dr. Godwin Friday, reveals a thoughtful and surprisingly magnanimous approach to this new reality. Far from a simple victory lap, the discussion offers a clear window into a new philosophy of governance, one defined by humility, service, and a palpable sense of relief.
The most repeated and profound takeaway from the victory is not a policy point, but a palpable change in the national mood. When asked about his first emotion on election night, Friday’s answer is unexpected: tears. But he is quick to clarify they were not for himself. “I felt so happy for the people,” he explains, “when I saw that people had embraced this and say, ‘you know, this is the opportunity we can’t miss.’”
That collective embrace, he says, is a direct reaction to what came before. The populace “was just tired of the arrogance and the bullying and the kind of entitlement that these fellas were projecting.” The result is an emotional and psychological shift, a national exhale after years of feeling weighed down. It’s a theme he hears constantly from citizens as he walks through town, a practice he maintains to stay connected.
“What people say to me now, the country feel light”.
To make a country feel “lighter,” a leader must do more than change the tone; they must change the system. In a striking break from the expected politics of retribution, Friday is making it clear that his mandate is to dismantle the culture of political victimisation.
The previous administration, he notes, was not just “micromanaged” but “politically tainted,” a place where decisions were often based on who you were doing something to, not what was being done.
His antidote is a radical professionalism. To public servants who may have been aligned with the previous government, his message is direct: he is not interested in retribution, only performance. He acknowledges the pain of his own supporters, who may want to see a purge, but argues the nation cannot move forward with an “‘is their turn our turn kind of thing.’”
The goal is to build a professional public service, where competence and duty are the only currencies that matter.
“I said in a sense I don’t really care how you got your job you know you might have got it because you were close to this person now you’re there do your job”.
During the campaign, Friday sensed something had shifted. The public’s desire for change had coalesced into something bigger than a simple electoral choice. He felt that once the population’s “fear was broken,” the result wouldn’t be a narrow win, but a landslide.
This conviction that a “movement” was underway reframes his mandate. It isn’t just a slim victory to be cautiously managed, but a deep, popular wellspring of desire for a fundamental change in how the country is run. This popular groundswell gives him the political capital to pursue his agenda, especially when confronting the harsh realities he was about to inherit.
The optimism of the victory is tempered by a sobering financial reality. When asked if the situation is worse than he anticipated, Friday is unequivocal. The public debt stands at over $3.1 billion, with a staggering 36 cents of every dollar collected going to service it. Compounding this are large, unpaid bills owed to local businesses.
Yet, this grim inheritance is met not with excuses, but with defiance. Instead of using the poor finances as a reason to scale back on promises, he sees it as the very reason he must deliver. This steely resolve, born from the mandate given to him by the “movement,” is perhaps the clearest indicator of his character as a leader.
Are things worse than you expected?
Yes.
“I’m not going to go out and say, well, listen, things worse than we thought. I promise these things, I will deliver them”.