Walk the talk and create the change we need!
A bright, secure and prosperous future in a Jamaica that works for all and provides real hope and progress for our children! That sounds good, doesn’t it? All of us must want a Jamaica like that. But how many of us are willing to engage more than talk and good sound bites?
Getting the kind of Jamaica we desire is going to rest heavily on our will, commitment and ability to deal with the issue of garrison-type communities, the issue of tribalism, and the issue of donmanship. These issues are creating many of our social ills and hindering our economic development.
These issues have been strategically developed over decades to support the political system. They have become the hotbed of crime and the multiplier of social ills of many sorts; the ills that strangle the lifeblood of development.
Counting the cost
It costs the country, we are told, $68 billion – $70 billion a year to fight crime. That’s about 10 per cent of our $710 billion annual budget. Plus there are the health care costs to treat the wounded along with costs to keep prisoners (approximately $380 million per year). These are not decreasing costs, but continually increasing ones. In addition, an editorial in another newspaper observed:
“…there are non-monetary costs, such as the pain, trauma and suffering of victims and their families, the long-term psychological effects of living in fear, and the long-term social damage caused by the cycle of violence, where children who have lost family members or otherwise profoundly traumatised by violence are more likely to be violent as adults, thereby perpetuating the problems from one generation to the next.” ( The Gleaner)
Altogether, this represents about 7.1 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP). Much of it is really a waste of needed resources. It is a problem that must be arrested now. The cost of crime is an unnecessary and avoidable expense. It is clearly a man-made problem, formulated by evil men, and now requires good men to resolve it. Are there any of those present?
The hard-earned money of taxpayers is wasted to maintain the evil system. Over the last 30 years it has cost us approximately 30,000 lives — many of whom were people who should have contributed significantly to national development and to our GDP. Then there is also the migration to consider; many Jamaicans simply leave for fairer climes because of the fear that crime produces.
The good, the bad and the ugly
We have been content to waste all this money to protect evil while we are unable to properly educate many of our children. This inability to properly educate and socialise our children leaves a high percentage of them at risk of falling into the ever-worsening cycle of poverty and crime.
Are our political parties proud of this achievement? I certainly do not see it in their lists of achievements, yet it is quite a noteworthy accomplishment.
We cannot deny the gains made in our nation through the significant contribution of our political parties, but we must face the truth and admit that the negative side of their tribal politics has created the social mess we’ve seen for the greater portion of our Independence. As our current Minister of National Security Robert “Bobby” Montague recently observed:
“…if crime was significantly reduced, the Government would be able to spend more money on infrastructural development as well as to pump more resources into health and education… I say all of this to emphasise the importance of putting our collective energies together in dealing with the scourge of crime.” ( jis.gov.jm/crime-major-cost-economy-montague)
The society has been unable to really enjoy the good work of some good politicians and civil servants since 1962 because the impact of the evil side is so overwhelming. If we were to make a performance assessment, by feelings only, then it would be quite easy to feel more harm than good has been done. I do believe in reality that the good is far greater than the bad, it is just that the bad is very, very bad.
Our politicians must be commended overall. It is the system that they have created that must be condemned, and the fact that they will not admit to the messy side they created nor are they making any moves to change it. If they will not acknowledge it, and take responsibility, they will do nothing to change it. Therein lies the problem.
Man-made problems
I repeat, our current economic and social problems are man-made. Led by the political or parties, we have created our problems. This is why I believe and have confidence that we, along with new leadership thinking, commitment and attitude, can solve them. I am reminded of the words of former US President John F Kennedy: “Our problems are man-made,” he said, “therefore they may be solved by man… No problem of human destiny is beyond human beings.”
It is because of this perspective that I am constantly compelled to challenge the leadership of all sectors to create the change. The political and church leadership are most critical to the process. The spiritual and moral dimensions are crucial to the foundation of our social and economic progress, with good governance as the sustaining and catalytic factor.
When the leadership in these two spheres is weak, evil, or plain ‘doan cah’, the nation is in trouble. Our current national condition, both positive and negative, is a result of the strengths and weaknesses of the church and state over the past 55 years.
This is why we cannot move to build the new Jamaica with weak church leadership that does not demonstrate care for the people; courage to stand for righteousness, truth and justice; or the will to engage and help dismantle the evil systems and structures that were allowed to develop in the old era.
Neither can we continue with weak political leadership steeped in the old-style tribal, garrison, donmanship, political system. That has been the order over the years that has created our present condition.
The old-style politics and those still trapped in its thinking must go quickly. If they will not let go, then we will have to ask them to leave. It is not primarily an issue of age, as it is a way of thinking; for too many of the younger politicians coming on the scene possess the spirit of their predecessors. Those have no place in the new Jamaica. We certainly must not allow them to settle in. A bold church and citizens must call them out and pray them out. A new-era prime minister and Opposition leader must keep them out.
Our national attention to secure the desired new Jamaica must set clear priorities and aggressively put in place what is necessary to deal with each priority. Sure, continuing to strengthen the economy is a priority; education and health must be a priority, with emphasis on equal opportunity for all and values infused in content.
Proven to work
The minister of education must cut the foreign intrusion nonsense of religious education and teach what had set the nation in good stead — that of Christian education rooted in values for character development. I know this will incur the wrath of a few, but so be it. We want what is proven to work.
The most urgent priority is the reordering of the society toward righteousness, justice, truth, equality and equity, strong work ethic, family, safety and security, and equal and abounding opportunities for jobs and wealth creation. Absolutely essential to this is overcoming crime and violence, at the heart of which is the divisive tribal politics, garrisonisation and donmanship. The dialogue to deal with these three roots has to get in high gear.
Who will bell the cat?
I am happy to hear from Delroy Chuck, minister of justice, that the matter has been raised in Cabinet. His stirring call to ‘Dismantle the garrisons now!’ was the front page story in this newspaper on Tuesday, October 17. Everything rests on our dealing with these areas. They cannot be raised and left in limbo, but must become front-burner matters. It will take bold leadership from our new-era prime minister, new or different thinking, to what has prevailed and an unflinching commitment to positive change.
Chuck said that question was raised as to who should tackle the job of dismantling the garrisons — the Government or the political parties? I have suggested in this column that the parties cannot by themselves lead this charge and expect any meaningful result. The parties must surely be committed to the process or be forced to engage in it in the national interest.
The best leaders for this process have to be mature leaders from the church along with leaders of civil society. The prime minister must give such an initiative his full support and may need to assign someone he can trust to help coordinate the process. Recall the leadership of Archbishop Desmond Tutu in the Truth and Reconciliation process in South Africa.
Crime cannot be overcome unless the backs of these issues are broken and their foundations destroyed. Time is not our friend. The violent crime is breaking out in many, many communities simultaneously. Something is triggering it, whether in the spiritual or the natural realm. We must act quickly.
We need the Church to come out of its four walls now and get into the streets, communities and schools with a message of hope and a better way. They need to have the freedom and liberty to move and not have stumbling blocks in the way. The nation is in crisis and it must be so viewed and so approached.
The new police leadership seems keen to act and do some things differently. That is refreshing. I raise the point again that the new commissioner needs to be given a free hand to select his own top-tier team to pursue his vision. Without that latitude and the relevant resources he cannot be justifiably held accountable for the outcome. We cannot give people basket to carry water.
The sad truth is that the police are also a part of the problem; therefore, if no meaningful change takes place within the police force, the outcomes we need will not be achieved. If the new commissioner is only a name change and not allowed freedom to at least make some fresh structural and systemic change, then do not expect much.
Real-life garrison
I share with you the real serious effects of the garrison oppression and injustice. Only last week, I had the opportunity to assist a distraught family with three children under nine years. The family had struggled to erect a board structure in an inner-city community of south St Andrew. The house, along with others in the community, was burnt to the ground because these families got caught in the needless lamentable violence. They have had to flee the community in fear. Left with nothing, they are ‘kotching’ with someone on the floor, staying in different places. The family is divided. There is major dislocation in their lives; increased costs to get children to school and father to work. The father is the only breadwinner and now has to find money to cover the living expenses for two locations since the family is divided.
Wicked men set one of the houses on fire, in one case with occupants inside. A son had to kick off a window for their escape. No one should have to suffer such injustice in our modern society, worse in a nation not at war. This is not an isolated incident. These are regular occurrences in garrison-type areas. Where do these poor families get help and redress to put life back together? There is such a deep level of frustration and sense of hopelessness for many.
In anguish I ask our political parties and political representatives of garrison constituencies, are you content for these conditions to remain? You helped to create them and you are maintaining it. It’s time to make radical steps for change.
Are we as leaders of society and citizens all content to live with it because it is not us or our neighbourhood? We had better believe that it affects us all; more tax dollars allocated to fight crime without hope of change, heightened fear and stress levels in society, decrease in investment in the nation, and the list goes on.
These issues must be tackled now. A just society, free from oppression, has to be the goal. The Government in office always has to accept the responsibility. ‘Sorry fi a pressure yuh, Mr New Era Prime Minister,’ but “uneasy lies the head that wears the crown”. We must solve these problems, and the time is now! So let’s together walk the talk that will create the change we need.
Rev Al Miller is pastor of Fellowship Tabernacle. Send comments to the Observer or pastormilleroffice@gmail.com.