Perils of Beryl’s passage fell on both JLP, PNP houses
Prime Minister Andrew Holness is absolutely correct in assuring the country that his Government would ensure transparency and accountability in the distribution of emergency relief to victims of Hurricane Beryl’s destruction.
Without prodding, as far as we know, Mr Holness admitted: “In the past, there has been a less than structured way in the delivery of emergency relief, and that has led to criticisms about the transparency, even accusations of political bias in the dispensation and distribution of relief to needy citizens.
“It would be a real travesty if such criticisms were made. So I want to assure Jamaica that whatever we do, there must be systems of accountability and transparency,” he declared last week after seeing the devastation first hand.
The prime minister went on to emphasise that “relief benefits will reach those in need without political favouritism or partisanship”. This could not be more critical because the perils of Beryl’s passage fell on both the houses of Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and People’s National Party (PNP) supporters.
We do not know specifically what motivated Mr Holness to address the issue at this time; however, we are sure it would have come up sooner or later, especially in an election period, with the polls being constitutionally due next year.
So what is more important than the prime minister’s utterances will be proving that action speaks louder than words. We have long, hard experience in this country of government largesse being directed to party members and strongholds. Indeed, he has all but acknowledged such.
Moreover, we can foresee that the JLP leader will have to work overtime to achieve his stated goals of transparency and accountability in the systems used to deliver the relief assistance to Jamaicans genuinely suffering at this time.
While he may be sincere, we are aware that keeping corrupt action out of the process is not something he can do alone. Members of Parliament who feel that they are behind in the public opinion polls may see an opportunity to curry favour with voters by how they influence distribution of supplies.
Our advice to those who may be tempted to go this route is that they should beware and “tek sleep mark death”, as our forbears liked to say. There are enough examples of governing parties all over the world which were sent packing by their electorates, based on the way they handled post-disaster events, like hurricanes.
We’ve never understood the rationale behind governing politicians discriminating against supporters of the other party at a time when people are in distress. Our inclination is to believe that it behoves the ruling party to ensure equitable treatment of all citizens and thereby potentially pick up new supporters.
In this seminal moment, let us give the prime minister the last word, and hold him to it:
“I understand that we are in an emergency, but an emergency does not suspend the need for accountability and transparency. So even in an emergency situation there will be a process…
“Every recipient of government assistance will need to provide a signature and valid identification to ensure all government funds can be accurately tracked to their intended beneficiaries, preventing misuse or diversion.”
Obviously, all this is much easier said than done.