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<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><SPAN class=TopStory>CWC and tourism</SPAN>
<SPAN class=Subheadline></SPAN></TD></TR><TR><TD>Michael Burke
Thursday, March 15, 2007
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<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width=100 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR><TD><SPAN class=Description>Michael Burke</SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><P class=StoryText align=justify>Politicians will always be politicians. So criticism by the political Opposition of expenditure for the hosting of Cricket World Cup is not out of character with an Opposition party in an election year. What is most disappointing is that so many Jamaicans are gullible enough to believe the political hype.<P class=StoryText align=justify>In his book Struggle in the periphery, Michael Manley wrote of the attempts to destabilise Jamaica in the 1970s so that the electorate would vote his party out of office. At the end of the book, he pointed out that it was unnecessary for the Opposition to have involved itself in that. At the time, the two-term tradition of the parties holding power was still in vogue.<P class=StoryText align=justify>And the fact that certain policies were displeasing to many, in Manley's view, meant that the Jamaica Labour Party stood a good chance of taking power from the PNP without resorting to such tactics. I state a similar thing today. The JLP stands a very good chance of winning the election expected this year without resorting to the negative tactic of criticising the expenditure for the World Cup.<P class=StoryText align=justify>The present government has been in power for 18 years and many would naturally want to see a change. There was therefore no need to attempt to sabotage the national unity needed for the staging of CWC. And to announce that they would postpone campaigning until after the event is not enough to excuse what they have done.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Unfortunately, the tunnel vision of some Jamaicans is nothing new.<P class=StoryText align=justify>In 1923 when the colonial government of the day planned to build three dams at Hermitage there was a hue and cry that it was a waste of money. "What do we need three dams for?" the people cried. Today, many if not most citizens of Kingston and St Andrew regret that only one dam was built at Hermitage.<P class=StoryText align=justify>In the late 1950s, the construction of the Ministry of Education was said to be a waste of money and was called "Glasspole's Glasshouse" and "Hotel Glasspole" in reference to Florizel Glasspole the then minister of education (later governor general). In 1961 at the time of the campaign for the referendum over the federation issue, Bustamante accused his cousin Norman Manley (then premier) "of throwing millions of pounds into the swamps of Negril while poor people are starving".<P class=StoryText align=justify>Then in 1962 it was the National Stadium. Norman Manley wanted a stadium that would stretch from Mountain View Avenue to Tom Redcam Avenue. He scaled down the construction so as not to be seen as extravagant in his attempts to win the 1962 election, which his party lost. Had we built the stadium complex that the elder Manley wanted we could have held World Cup football already.<P class=StoryText align=justify>In 1971 when the JLP was in power (a year before the People's National Party came to power in 1972) the highway from Kingston to Spanish Town was being built. Part of the PNP campaign leading up to the 1972 election included statements by then PNP president Michael Manley that it was a waste of money as farmers needed roads to get to market. And the JLP drew the same card on the PNP in recent times with respect to Highway 2000 and the new toll roads.<P class=StoryText align=justify>A few weeks ago Delroy Chuck wrote in his Gleaner column criticising the prime min
<SPAN class=Subheadline></SPAN></TD></TR><TR><TD>Michael Burke
Thursday, March 15, 2007
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width=100 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR><TD><SPAN class=Description>Michael Burke</SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><P class=StoryText align=justify>Politicians will always be politicians. So criticism by the political Opposition of expenditure for the hosting of Cricket World Cup is not out of character with an Opposition party in an election year. What is most disappointing is that so many Jamaicans are gullible enough to believe the political hype.<P class=StoryText align=justify>In his book Struggle in the periphery, Michael Manley wrote of the attempts to destabilise Jamaica in the 1970s so that the electorate would vote his party out of office. At the end of the book, he pointed out that it was unnecessary for the Opposition to have involved itself in that. At the time, the two-term tradition of the parties holding power was still in vogue.<P class=StoryText align=justify>And the fact that certain policies were displeasing to many, in Manley's view, meant that the Jamaica Labour Party stood a good chance of taking power from the PNP without resorting to such tactics. I state a similar thing today. The JLP stands a very good chance of winning the election expected this year without resorting to the negative tactic of criticising the expenditure for the World Cup.<P class=StoryText align=justify>The present government has been in power for 18 years and many would naturally want to see a change. There was therefore no need to attempt to sabotage the national unity needed for the staging of CWC. And to announce that they would postpone campaigning until after the event is not enough to excuse what they have done.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Unfortunately, the tunnel vision of some Jamaicans is nothing new.<P class=StoryText align=justify>In 1923 when the colonial government of the day planned to build three dams at Hermitage there was a hue and cry that it was a waste of money. "What do we need three dams for?" the people cried. Today, many if not most citizens of Kingston and St Andrew regret that only one dam was built at Hermitage.<P class=StoryText align=justify>In the late 1950s, the construction of the Ministry of Education was said to be a waste of money and was called "Glasspole's Glasshouse" and "Hotel Glasspole" in reference to Florizel Glasspole the then minister of education (later governor general). In 1961 at the time of the campaign for the referendum over the federation issue, Bustamante accused his cousin Norman Manley (then premier) "of throwing millions of pounds into the swamps of Negril while poor people are starving".<P class=StoryText align=justify>Then in 1962 it was the National Stadium. Norman Manley wanted a stadium that would stretch from Mountain View Avenue to Tom Redcam Avenue. He scaled down the construction so as not to be seen as extravagant in his attempts to win the 1962 election, which his party lost. Had we built the stadium complex that the elder Manley wanted we could have held World Cup football already.<P class=StoryText align=justify>In 1971 when the JLP was in power (a year before the People's National Party came to power in 1972) the highway from Kingston to Spanish Town was being built. Part of the PNP campaign leading up to the 1972 election included statements by then PNP president Michael Manley that it was a waste of money as farmers needed roads to get to market. And the JLP drew the same card on the PNP in recent times with respect to Highway 2000 and the new toll roads.<P class=StoryText align=justify>A few weeks ago Delroy Chuck wrote in his Gleaner column criticising the prime min
</DIV><DIV></DIV><DIV>I too hope that plans are underway to utilise, in fact, maximise that beautiful stadium. Many people might not know this but that Trelawny stadium shall not remain in the wilderness for too long. There are some major plans afoot for that area, including Harmony Cove. So, I don't expect that stadium to become a white elephant.</DIV>
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