NIDS a reflection of slavery

THE EDITOR, Sir: 

It is quite interesting  that  the National Identification System legislation is still in existence today. It is considered to be the sloppiest piece of legislation to pass through our parliamentary system with the countless amount of amendments. This shows that the existence of our parliamentary democracy must be reevaluated, the passing of this legislation has exposed a weakness that future generations must address.

The NIDS is described as the "solution for all crime", perhaps by using facial recognition and having access to every Jamaican's DNA, but at the expense of breaching the freedom of choice, and other human rights in our very corrupt state of affairs. It is rather interesting that an ordinary citizen will not be able to sue the Government or its agencies for any abuse of power or any misuse of information and, after much debate in Parliament, we can come to the understanding that it was designed to be like this. 

The NIDS will be mandatory for all Jamaicans, and the legislation stipulates that it is needed   to access all essential services, notwithstanding that foreigners who visit the island will have access to these essential services that the ordinary Jamaican will be refused by this legislation. This is indeed an injustice. 

Now let us image if  an overly ambiguous dictator becomes prime minister. The NIDS is the perfect tool to cause the demise of the powerless but it would be rather foolhardy for us to trust the words of our politicians and think that this is far from the reality. 

My solution  is simple. Every Jamaican who is above age 18 should be enumerated, whether you are Christian or non-Christian, whether you are Rastafarian or socialist, and be prepared  to  vote against  the NIDS in the next general election or any party that supports it. Whether in rain, storm, violence or sunshine, let your vote count because, believe it or not, this will  affect you and all generations to come.

Marvin Forbes