The Observer headline of last Thursday was explosive — ‘Peter disliked Portia’ — in relation to a WikiLeaks cable in which PNP bigwig Dr Peter Phillips was supposed to have told a US embassy official in July 2008 that he would never serve in another Portia Simpson Miller-led government because, “It would be too distasteful.”

Explosive, but hardly surprising.

Even more stunning, the article stated, “Phillips stated that it was an astonishing possibility that the PNP, after “running the country into the ground for the last 18 years, could possibly come back to power”.

Peter Phillips is a man for whom I have a high admiration, but at this time I am forced to question his broad view on collective responsibility in politics and government.

Among chameleons, politicians tend to stand out in superlatives; but am I to believe that he was really part of an administration that he so loathed that, notwithstanding the fact that he believed the Government that his dearly beloved PNP ran for multiple terms was running the country into the ground, he stuck it out, sang its praises and showed us a pleasant face?

What space is there left for him in the party now, and how does the PNP survive this?

I was always of the belief that a Seaga-led JLP would have been worse than anything the PNP could put up and it was for that reason that I voted for the PNP in 1993, 1997 and 2002. But, at this time I would want to say to Peter Phillips, ‘give me back those votes’.

At one level I admire his honesty to the US embassy officer, but how must I square that with his seeming dishonesty to the rest of us who formed lines to vote for the PNP when he knew that it was running the country into the ground. We know that the country was being run by a bunch of recycled socialists, but this revelation must be seen for what it is — Phillips’s disgust with what was taking place, his silence in remaining in his many posts and his insistence, after all of that, to stick it out to run again in the next elections.

That the PNP has run out of ideas is no secret. Its leader has decided that she is the idea, and that her aura will take the party to the next win. But for what purpose, since she is the only idea and the party has none? To occupy Jamaica House? To secure jobs for the boys and girls?

The Manatt matter has gone sour on the PNP, the US secretary of state has given a fillip to the JLP Government, the private sector has given Golding’s latest moves a passing grade, the JLP is moving in the right direction in the polls as I had known it would, the PNP is moving in the wrong direction in the polls, inflation is holding to low limits and, now WikiLeaks and the Observer have dropped this bombshell on the PNP.

What future is there for Peter Phillips in the PNP? KD Knight has stolen the thunder from Portia Simpson Miller on the Manatt matter, but now he has taken a national matter and made it into a raw political tactic which he hopes will assist the PNP to retake power next year.

Something tells me that will not happen.

The PNP has been leaderless for the last four years simply because the leader has never fully come to terms with the reality of the PNP’s loss in 2007. Had she accepted it and moved to remake the party, she probably would have done what was needed — to remove herself from the leadership post, a job that was always much too big for her.

One gets the impression that Dr Phillips must have broached the subject of the PNP administration’s failure to those in the leadership ranks of the party; but they probably were too taken up with raiding the barn and eating the corn to listen to him. The fact is, while they sat at the door of the barn and allowed in many assorted rats, Peter knew what was taking place and kept his mouth shut because that is the reality of collective responsibility in politics. Too keep one’s mouth shut while the stuff is flying off the spinning fan.

Balance needed in Tobacco control legislation

IF the anti-tobacco lobby has its way, every single company in the manufacturing and distribution of cigarettes would be shut down tomorrow.

Because it has been established that the smoking of cigarettes is not just harmful to the health of those who indulge, but that second-hand smoke affects those who do not, many countries in the world have moved to apply legislation that controls smoking in public places, even to the point of imposing strictures on those who expose children to smoke in the ‘privacy’ of their motor vehicles.

In Jamaica, many companies — large, mid-sized and small — have had, over the last 10 years or so, non-smoking regimes in their office space. If a person wants to light up he goes outside just as long as he recognises that his working hours do not allow him cigarette breaks every half-hour.

The major difference between one person ingesting cigarette smoke and another imbibing alcohol is that where the heavy drinker may eventually turn out to be one who is destructive to himself and his family, all the smoker has to do is light up and those around him are automatically exposed to his vice.

Recognising that smoking cigarettes is an adult exercise and that as long as it remains legal it is up to the adult smoker to decide if he smokes one or 30 per day, almost every country in the world has used taxation as the main method of attempting to decrease the use of cigarettes. In this simple equation, the idea is, if it’s too expensive to the smoker, his pocket will feel the pain long before his insides are affected.

In many instances the relationship between cigarette manufacturers/distributors and governments have proven to be antagonistic with companies complaining that they are being taxed out of business while governments, faced with the reality of health issues, also know that in the taxation regime on smoking the companies are seen as convenient cash cows.

While the company which controls the lion’s share of the cigarette distribution market (95 per cent) in Jamaica, Carreras, has long moved far ahead of what is desired in terms of exposing health issues with smoking, the fact is, Jamaica has been lax in enacting tobacco control legislation. Due to be enacted soon, it is hoped that the laws take into consideration the health of the nation while recognising that as long as smoking a cigarette is legal, adults are entitled to its use — just as long as the smoke is exposed to the fewest people possible. In other words, the legislation must be balanced and practical.

Carreras contributes significantly to the revenues of the Government of Jamaica, delivering a total of over $10 billion in taxes for the 2010/11 fiscal year. That sum represents some four per cent of the Government’s budget for the period. If the anti-smoking lobby has its way, that $10 billion would be zero because, like anti-abortionists, they would probably weld the doors of the company shut for good.

Although I am aware that in some sense the tobacco control community would want to see draconian measures implemented, the reality is that in most countries balance is had in key areas of tobacco control, a prime example being that of a ban on smoking in indoor public places, where provisions are made for accommodating smoking in properly ventilated outdoor areas.

My personal view is that adults are entitled to eat greasy fast food, drink overproof rum and smoke cigarettes just as long as they are given all the information on what is passing their lips. Recognising that tobacco control legislation is about to be debated in Parliament, I spoke with Mr Christopher Brown of Carreras and sought his general position on the matter.

Said he: “As a responsible tobacco company, we consistently highlight the fact that we are in broad agreement with several areas of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) which the proposed legislation aims to support. Such areas include: Preventing the youth from smoking and setting a minimum age restriction for the sale of tobacco products; informing the public of the risks associated with smoking through a health warning labelling regime, whilst preserving our intellectual property and commercial rights; ensuring that the marketing of tobacco products is consistent with all bounds of the voluntary code with Government; development and implementation of sensible and balanced public and workplace smoking policies, respecting non-smokers and smokers alike; and taking tough action against smuggling and counterfeit products.”

His company sent me a number of pamphlets, one of which highlighted the company’s core beliefs.

“(1) We believe in the provision of accurate, clear health messages about the risks of tobacco consumption. (2) We believe the health impact of tobacco consumption should be reduced whilst respecting the right of informed adults to choose the products they prefer. (3) We believe that relevant and meaningful information about our products should continue to be available. (4) We believe that underage people should not consume tobacco products. (5) We believe that our brands and products should be marketed responsibly and directed at adult consumers. (6) We believe in the appropriate taxation of tobacco products and the elimination of illicit trade. (7) We believe in regulation that balances the interests of all sections of society, including tobacco consumers and the tobacco industry. (8) We believe that public smoking should be approached in a way that balances the interests of smokers and non-smokers.”

To my way of seeing it, the company is correct in its belief that it ought to have a voice in the formation of government policy which will affect it. With the company trying to protect itself and its continued viability and the Government listening to it and those voices from the anti-smoking lobby, the ideal is balance in developing tobacco control policy.

When I asked the company precisely what it would be advocating or presenting to the Government on this delicate and controversial issue it said, “We advocate that smokers should not smoke around children. We believe private entities should be allowed by law to set up adequately ventilated reserved smoking areas. In enclosed public places, smoking should only be allowed in designated, adequately ventilated areas. For indoor outlets such as nightclubs, we believe that an outlet owner should be allowed to designate smoking vs non-smoking areas once ventilation exists. Ventilation should seek to remove and refresh the air in an outdoor venue in line with internationally accepted air comfort standards.”

According to the Financial Times of January 28, 2011, “Most of the countries that have imposed smoking restrictions on catering and entertainment premises allow a certain degree of flexibility, particularly in open air/outdoor spaces. In the United Kingdom for instance, the ban on smoking in pubs and restaurants, imposed three years ago, has failed to have an impact on the country’s hard-core smokers, according to figures. Some 21 per cent of UK adults said they were smokers in 2009, a proportion unchanged since 2007 when legislation came into force imposing the ban. The average number of cigarettes smoked also remained constant during the period; at 14 per day for men and 13 for women. Smoking — the leading cause of preventable illness and premature death in the UK — remains twice as common among adults in routine and manual jobs.”

The way ahead for the upcoming legislation ought not to be of the ‘slash and burn’ type. It must take into consideration all the stakeholders, including the most important one in the equation, the consumer.

Score one more for LIME

WHILE Ragashanti was on radio it was always my view that his contribution in that space was totally wasted.

I could never quite fathom how a man of his education and intelligence could so demean his listeners by choosing to bring them into a deeper appreciation of crassness while dubbing it entertainment.

But, notwithstanding my view, the listeners loved it; loved him.

It is now my understanding that a partnership has been set up between Ragga and LIME to launch him on its Mobile TV. I am predicting that it will be an instant hit.

The channel, already launched, will be called Tambourine.

As a supporter of free speech I congratulate LIME, even though I will probably listen in for a few of the initial programmes. That will not deter Ragashanti’s avid followers who will follow him wherever he goes.

I congratulate LIME on its innovativeness.

Learning for LIFE

I must commend my politician friends Pearnel Charles, minister of labour, and Daryl Vaz, information minister, who saw the tremendous importance and value of the Diageo/Red Stripe Learning for Life programme and thought it prudent to be involved.

In a recent graduation exercise at which Vaz delivered the guest speaker’s address, over 600 participants from underprivileged backgrounds graduated with new-learned competencies in bartending, customer service, entertainment management and entrepreneurship. That is the way to go!

In particular he made mention of the fact that the Government cannot do all things and that corporate entities like Red Stripe/Diageo can help in making the lives of citizens better. He noted that the company has a “concrete, forceful and unequivocal commitment to corporate social responsibility” and it has not faltered.

I have long been an admirer of programmes like these and their efforts to educate young people. Learning for Life has gone a far way in transforming the lives of many young Jamaicans and will continue to do so. I was surprised and overjoyed to hear that so many students were completing the programme this year. That is quite a feat for a programme, which had only 80 graduates in the first year.

Vaz said that, by equipping many young women to make a major contribution to strengthening the economic and social fabric, and by training our young men, Diageo was positively impacting the crime problem by offering alternatives to the youth. I strongly agree.

The graduates were equipped with transferable skills and National Vocational Qualification (NVQJ) certification for self-employment and job placement. Through its Learning for Life programme, Diageo works with established educational and training organisations to provide training in tourism, retailing, the arts, hospitality, entrepreneurship and teaching.

The programmes aim to increase students’ opportunities to find employment and become active contributors to their communities. Congratulations, gentlemen!

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