Mitchell’s second coming

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad - Tuesday's resounding electoral victory has given Dr Keith Mitchell an emphatic mandate from the people of Grenada to assume the authority and responsibility for leading their country out of its current dire straits. The 15-0 clean sweep by Dr Mitchell's New National Party puts him in the ranks of Caribbean prime ministers who have received multiple mandates to govern. Tomorrow, Grenadians will enjoy a national holiday to celebrate the NNP's victory. After that, however, the returned prime minister should be warned that, despite his overwhelming mandate, Grenadians are unlikely to waste too much time waiting for his government to deliver. For one thing, they have previously had no hesitation in showing him the door as they did in 2008 after three terms; for another, the extent of their country's problems leave little room for patience. With a 30 per cent rate of unemployment, Grenada's problems are biting, and biting hard. Having presented themselves as the party with solutions, the NNP will be expected to begin delivering as Grenadians look for early signs that the NNP administration can put the brake on economic decline and begin the process of a turnaround.