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A warning to the Government
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
One of the ugliest features of the politics practised in Jamaica is its vindictive streak which, in many ways, fuels the feeling of antipathy held by many Jamaicans for politics and politicians in general.
This nasty behaviour gained momentum in the 1970s and grew even more in the 1980s when people who were perceived to have voted against the ruling party were either forced out of their jobs or denied employment simply on that basis.
To be fair to the previous administration, we saw a reduction in this despicable practice during the 1990s, giving us some hope that we were on the road to a level of maturity in our politics that was healthy and a true reflection of the democracy we cherish.
We were further encouraged that this maturity had gained greater acceptance after the last general elections when the leader of the victorious Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), Mr Bruce Golding, signalled that his administration would not be occupied with how people voted but with their ability to do their jobs.
Of course, we acknowledge that there are certain sensitive positions in which the Government would want to place professionals who share their vision for Jamaica and on whom they can depend to implement their policies. It happens the world over and is accepted as the norm.
We raise this issue in reference to the story carried on the front page of this week's Sunday Observer reporting on the likely doubling of toll charges on the Portmore leg of Highway 2000 by the end of this month.
According to the story, the transport minister, Mr Mike Henry, is being pressured by finance ministry officials to implement a 100 per cent increase for the toll operators in order to rid the state of the monthly $22-million subsidy it now absorbs.
If that were to happen, Minister Henry and his government would be reneging on a promise they made while in Opposition to renegotiate the agreement with the toll operators if they were elected to office.
The idea of renegotiating the toll, the JLP said, was to lower the rates, especially to ease the burden on residents of Portmore, the people who are most affected by the toll and who had vociferously protested its implementation.
Minister Henry, obviously aware of the political fallout that a toll increase would have on the Government, is trying to renegotiate the contract to extend the period from 30 to 40 years, and look for lower interest money.
That's all very fine.
However, we have great cause for concern by the Sunday Observer report that there is a feeling in some JLP circles that the party has no obligation to the Portmore residents because they voted in the majority for the PNP - which had imposed the toll - at last September's general elections.
"A significant body of opinion is seemingly behind the position that Portmore voted for the PNP, surprisingly against the JLP's clamouring then, for downward adjustments to the toll rate," a source told the newspaper.
In case it escaped these rabid supporters of the JLP, their party was elected to form the Government of Jamaica, not a government for JLP supporters. As such, the Government does have an obligation to attend to the interests of the people of Portmore, regardless of how they voted.
Both Prime Minister Golding and Minister Henry need to let these blinkered supporters, and indeed the entire country, know that they will not encourage this kind of political nonsense. Jamaica doesn't need to go that road again.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
One of the ugliest features of the politics practised in Jamaica is its vindictive streak which, in many ways, fuels the feeling of antipathy held by many Jamaicans for politics and politicians in general.
This nasty behaviour gained momentum in the 1970s and grew even more in the 1980s when people who were perceived to have voted against the ruling party were either forced out of their jobs or denied employment simply on that basis.
To be fair to the previous administration, we saw a reduction in this despicable practice during the 1990s, giving us some hope that we were on the road to a level of maturity in our politics that was healthy and a true reflection of the democracy we cherish.
We were further encouraged that this maturity had gained greater acceptance after the last general elections when the leader of the victorious Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), Mr Bruce Golding, signalled that his administration would not be occupied with how people voted but with their ability to do their jobs.
Of course, we acknowledge that there are certain sensitive positions in which the Government would want to place professionals who share their vision for Jamaica and on whom they can depend to implement their policies. It happens the world over and is accepted as the norm.
We raise this issue in reference to the story carried on the front page of this week's Sunday Observer reporting on the likely doubling of toll charges on the Portmore leg of Highway 2000 by the end of this month.
According to the story, the transport minister, Mr Mike Henry, is being pressured by finance ministry officials to implement a 100 per cent increase for the toll operators in order to rid the state of the monthly $22-million subsidy it now absorbs.
If that were to happen, Minister Henry and his government would be reneging on a promise they made while in Opposition to renegotiate the agreement with the toll operators if they were elected to office.
The idea of renegotiating the toll, the JLP said, was to lower the rates, especially to ease the burden on residents of Portmore, the people who are most affected by the toll and who had vociferously protested its implementation.
Minister Henry, obviously aware of the political fallout that a toll increase would have on the Government, is trying to renegotiate the contract to extend the period from 30 to 40 years, and look for lower interest money.
That's all very fine.
However, we have great cause for concern by the Sunday Observer report that there is a feeling in some JLP circles that the party has no obligation to the Portmore residents because they voted in the majority for the PNP - which had imposed the toll - at last September's general elections.
"A significant body of opinion is seemingly behind the position that Portmore voted for the PNP, surprisingly against the JLP's clamouring then, for downward adjustments to the toll rate," a source told the newspaper.
In case it escaped these rabid supporters of the JLP, their party was elected to form the Government of Jamaica, not a government for JLP supporters. As such, the Government does have an obligation to attend to the interests of the people of Portmore, regardless of how they voted.
Both Prime Minister Golding and Minister Henry need to let these blinkered supporters, and indeed the entire country, know that they will not encourage this kind of political nonsense. Jamaica doesn't need to go that road again.