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MARK WIGNALL
Thursday, October 08, 2009
Some years ago when Dr Dennis Minott, founder of A-Quest did a survey of high schools, Meadowbrook High School came out ahead of traditional top performers such as Campion, Immaculate and even KC, Minott's alma mater.
MARK WIGNALL
I was quite puzzled but Dr Minott explained that schools like Immaculate and Campion begin their game with an automatic advantage by taking in on day one only the top performers in the Common Entrance Examination (prior to G-Sat). After applying specific weights to each high school in his testing programme, it was determined that based on the "raw material" that came in on day one versus what the schools turned out six years later, Meadowbrook came out number one.
If we do even a cursory examination of political administrations in this country, the JLP administration of 1962 to 1972 would show, in raw growth statistics, that it was the most "successful" of all that we have had since we became independent. The truth is, Jamaica in those days was in many respects like Campion and Immaculate, on the receiving end of overseas investments without us having to ship out every week high-powered, expensive delegations on junkets to beg investors to take advantage of cheap wages and an easily trainable work force.
For this reason, it has been my personal judgement that based on how badly wrecked Jamaica's economy was after nine years of Michael Manley's faux-democratic socialist experiment (1972-1980), Eddie Seaga's leadership of the country in the 1985 to 1989 period (of his 1980 to 1989 stint) was the most successful period of political management in our post-independence history.
I say this against the background that Michael Manley was our most beloved leader and Eddie Seaga was our most reviled. It was always easy to fall in love with Michael Manley. He was warm and charming, and the ladies adored him. Publicly, Seaga was disliked and he came across as cold and not the sort of man one would want to sit down with and have a drink. If the ladies loved him, it was kept very secret.
Because of that, once he fixed the wreck that came about under Michael's watch, the country ditched him. It is also my belief that Seaga made a most grievous error in his "with malice towards none" speech in his victory acceptance in 1980. All that speech did was grease the hinges on the door to make it easy for the political pirates to enter.
Remember now, in 1980 the country was well aware of many of the misdeeds of the 1972 to 1980 PNP administration. Once it became clear in the bloody months of July 1980 to October 1980 that the JLP was going to destroy the PNP at the polls, many people on the streets wanted the JLP and expected it to deal with the PNP by "locking dem up".
SEAGA... his leadership in 1985 to 1989 was the most successful period of political management in our post-independence history
"Malice towards none" may have sounded statesman-like when Seaga uttered it, but in reality it created a template for an unwritten quid pro quo between the PNP and the JLP, called an "elite club" by Bruce Golding in 1997. That code essentially said, "If mi tief, you sey nutten. If you tief, mi sey nutten.'
But there is an even more insidious type of political immorality that speaks to the ethics in our politics. In many ways the man of the moment in the PNP, Omar Davies, is our best example of this. Just prior to the JLP win in September 2007, I had private discussions with certain JLP-connected people where I told them that in less than a month after they won, a full report to the nation should be made to the people of this country. To me it was simple. One had to give account for the "raw material" that the JLP was beginning with.
Well, it didn't happen, and coupled with impossible promises that the JLP made in its election campaign, the state is now locked inside a cocoon of confusion.
When Dr Omar Davies speaks with authority and dares to lecture the JLP administration, I admit to cringing. I say to myself, is this the man under whose watch the entire black entrepreneurial class was destroyed? Is this the same man under whose watch inflation spiked to unheard-of levels, businesses were destroyed by his evil monetary policy and banks were lending money at 60 per cent? Is this the same man who ran down the economy in such a manner that for the entire 14 years of his being the finance minister, the country "grew" in aggregate three percentage points and placed us close to the bottom of the pile in the Caribbean?
Let us not forget those items which were left off the budget which have come back to haunt the JLP administration and its lack of readiness on assuming government, namely, debts incurred by Air Jamaica, the Sugar Company and JUTC which have had to be assumed by government, the interest payments on which amount to $6.2 billion per year. Arrears in those loans have raised expenses to $1.9 billion. Interest payments due to Bank of Jamaica are now $12.795 billion. Losses incurred by Clarendon Alumina Production because of 2001 forward-sale agreement 2008/09, $3 billion; 2009/10, $3.6 billion. Additional provision to meet operating losses of the Sugar Company in 2009/10, $1.3 billion. Indebtedness to Ashtrom relating to Sabina Park and Soapberry Treatment Plant, $484 million.
Not yet included is the cost to service the National Road Operating and Constructing Company debt that up to now has been covered by a portion of the loans which will be exhausted by the end of this year. My information is that losses for 2008 were in the region of $8 billion. So far, I have been unable to determine what will be the cost of servicing that debt, but according to one government source, "It is going to be huge and a massive burden on this country. I know that efforts are being made to secure cheaper money to pay out some of the expensive loans that were used to finance it. In that way we hope to reduce the service cost."
Additionally, as is the norm, MPs were due a seven per cent increase last year. Some may consider it purely symbolic and scoff at it against Mike Henry's house-refurbishing cost. Not only did Golding convince his MPs that that raise was an impossibility, but he cut his own pay by 15 per cent and had his MPs sign to accept a cut of 10 per cent. The cut was remitted to the accountant general and was assigned for budgetary support for indigent relief.
Want to have a guess as to which set of people did not agree to that pay cut? All Opposition MPs! Hypocritical PNP.
The PNP has taken hypocrisy to the level of art and science and the hapless JLP government is trapped in it simply because it did not come clean to the country on day one. For sure we know that dark days are ahead, but had the JLP administration faced the music early in its first year, the PNP would have been forced to be more creative in its criticisms. My advice to Omar Davies now? Shut up!
observemark@gmail.com
http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/colum..._JLP_GOV_T.asp
Thursday, October 08, 2009
Some years ago when Dr Dennis Minott, founder of A-Quest did a survey of high schools, Meadowbrook High School came out ahead of traditional top performers such as Campion, Immaculate and even KC, Minott's alma mater.
MARK WIGNALL
I was quite puzzled but Dr Minott explained that schools like Immaculate and Campion begin their game with an automatic advantage by taking in on day one only the top performers in the Common Entrance Examination (prior to G-Sat). After applying specific weights to each high school in his testing programme, it was determined that based on the "raw material" that came in on day one versus what the schools turned out six years later, Meadowbrook came out number one.
If we do even a cursory examination of political administrations in this country, the JLP administration of 1962 to 1972 would show, in raw growth statistics, that it was the most "successful" of all that we have had since we became independent. The truth is, Jamaica in those days was in many respects like Campion and Immaculate, on the receiving end of overseas investments without us having to ship out every week high-powered, expensive delegations on junkets to beg investors to take advantage of cheap wages and an easily trainable work force.
For this reason, it has been my personal judgement that based on how badly wrecked Jamaica's economy was after nine years of Michael Manley's faux-democratic socialist experiment (1972-1980), Eddie Seaga's leadership of the country in the 1985 to 1989 period (of his 1980 to 1989 stint) was the most successful period of political management in our post-independence history.
I say this against the background that Michael Manley was our most beloved leader and Eddie Seaga was our most reviled. It was always easy to fall in love with Michael Manley. He was warm and charming, and the ladies adored him. Publicly, Seaga was disliked and he came across as cold and not the sort of man one would want to sit down with and have a drink. If the ladies loved him, it was kept very secret.
Because of that, once he fixed the wreck that came about under Michael's watch, the country ditched him. It is also my belief that Seaga made a most grievous error in his "with malice towards none" speech in his victory acceptance in 1980. All that speech did was grease the hinges on the door to make it easy for the political pirates to enter.
Remember now, in 1980 the country was well aware of many of the misdeeds of the 1972 to 1980 PNP administration. Once it became clear in the bloody months of July 1980 to October 1980 that the JLP was going to destroy the PNP at the polls, many people on the streets wanted the JLP and expected it to deal with the PNP by "locking dem up".
SEAGA... his leadership in 1985 to 1989 was the most successful period of political management in our post-independence history
"Malice towards none" may have sounded statesman-like when Seaga uttered it, but in reality it created a template for an unwritten quid pro quo between the PNP and the JLP, called an "elite club" by Bruce Golding in 1997. That code essentially said, "If mi tief, you sey nutten. If you tief, mi sey nutten.'
But there is an even more insidious type of political immorality that speaks to the ethics in our politics. In many ways the man of the moment in the PNP, Omar Davies, is our best example of this. Just prior to the JLP win in September 2007, I had private discussions with certain JLP-connected people where I told them that in less than a month after they won, a full report to the nation should be made to the people of this country. To me it was simple. One had to give account for the "raw material" that the JLP was beginning with.
Well, it didn't happen, and coupled with impossible promises that the JLP made in its election campaign, the state is now locked inside a cocoon of confusion.
When Dr Omar Davies speaks with authority and dares to lecture the JLP administration, I admit to cringing. I say to myself, is this the man under whose watch the entire black entrepreneurial class was destroyed? Is this the same man under whose watch inflation spiked to unheard-of levels, businesses were destroyed by his evil monetary policy and banks were lending money at 60 per cent? Is this the same man who ran down the economy in such a manner that for the entire 14 years of his being the finance minister, the country "grew" in aggregate three percentage points and placed us close to the bottom of the pile in the Caribbean?
Let us not forget those items which were left off the budget which have come back to haunt the JLP administration and its lack of readiness on assuming government, namely, debts incurred by Air Jamaica, the Sugar Company and JUTC which have had to be assumed by government, the interest payments on which amount to $6.2 billion per year. Arrears in those loans have raised expenses to $1.9 billion. Interest payments due to Bank of Jamaica are now $12.795 billion. Losses incurred by Clarendon Alumina Production because of 2001 forward-sale agreement 2008/09, $3 billion; 2009/10, $3.6 billion. Additional provision to meet operating losses of the Sugar Company in 2009/10, $1.3 billion. Indebtedness to Ashtrom relating to Sabina Park and Soapberry Treatment Plant, $484 million.
Not yet included is the cost to service the National Road Operating and Constructing Company debt that up to now has been covered by a portion of the loans which will be exhausted by the end of this year. My information is that losses for 2008 were in the region of $8 billion. So far, I have been unable to determine what will be the cost of servicing that debt, but according to one government source, "It is going to be huge and a massive burden on this country. I know that efforts are being made to secure cheaper money to pay out some of the expensive loans that were used to finance it. In that way we hope to reduce the service cost."
Additionally, as is the norm, MPs were due a seven per cent increase last year. Some may consider it purely symbolic and scoff at it against Mike Henry's house-refurbishing cost. Not only did Golding convince his MPs that that raise was an impossibility, but he cut his own pay by 15 per cent and had his MPs sign to accept a cut of 10 per cent. The cut was remitted to the accountant general and was assigned for budgetary support for indigent relief.
Want to have a guess as to which set of people did not agree to that pay cut? All Opposition MPs! Hypocritical PNP.
The PNP has taken hypocrisy to the level of art and science and the hapless JLP government is trapped in it simply because it did not come clean to the country on day one. For sure we know that dark days are ahead, but had the JLP administration faced the music early in its first year, the PNP would have been forced to be more creative in its criticisms. My advice to Omar Davies now? Shut up!
observemark@gmail.com
http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/colum..._JLP_GOV_T.asp
by the way , what a way PJ Patterson reign , resign and nobody hear 
lazie , seaga did well in the 80s because there was a CAUSE !
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