Stop this dangerous course

It was a hot Saturday in July 2001. The markets were busy in downtown Kingston. Then all hell broke loose. Members of our security forces were pinned down by criminals in west Kingston. A long and tragic battle ensued.

There were several fatalities and finally a truce was arranged. The criminals were so strong that they facilitated the truce. Members of the nation's security forces were given safe passage out of the zone of political exclusion.

Imagine that! The power of the criminal underworld was so strong that the defenders of law and order had to retreat in ignominy. Sadly, some talk-show hosts and other opinion shapers joined in the condemnation of the Reneto Adams-led security team which went to west Kingston in search of guns and wanted men. This, no doubt, emboldened the dons and their vicious supporters into entrenching their reign of cruelty and crime over our people.

Many of us will recall the defeated and dejected superintendent of police warning Jamaica that we would "pay dearly, dearly" for allowing the criminal-controlled enclave to continue with its nefarious business as usual. Then political expediency triumphed over law and order. Truth gave way to political propaganda.

The truth of Adams' lament was evident last year in west Kingston. More than 70 persons paid the ultimate price - losing their lives, foreign direct investment plummeted to the lowest level in years, thousands of jobs were lost and Jamaica's international reputation got a battering, as our political directorate placed raw political advantage over the best interest of our nation. That was the price we paid for the political expedience practised by our politicians and supported by the unscrupulous opinion shapers and partisan followers.

The political demise of Bruce Golding was undoubtedly connected to his warm embrace of political machinations while setting aside the moral principles he once espoused when he was associated with a new and different political dispensation. Once again, in the everlasting battle of right and wrong, the short-term and pyrrhic victory of wrong was overwhelmingly defeated by moral imperatives.

Writing in the In Focus section of The Sunday Gleaner of October 23, 2011, a group of church leaders recommended 10 points which should guide our nation in "renewing hope in our country". Among these points were the following: "The time has come for all of us to put our country before our party." And: "The decisions of Government must not only be legal, they must be moral as well."

These exhortations should be endorsed as an excellent antidote to our corrupt practice of political expedience. The church leaders behoved our leaders to be guided by a "commitment to honesty, integrity and truthfulness" in all decisions of Government. Law-abiding and decent Jamaicans must wholeheartedly show our support for these fundamental principles of good governance.

Unfortunately, too many of our political leaders are yet to appreciate that political expedience is against the best interest of our beloved country. Thomas Jefferson, the United States president at the turn of the 19th century, once said, "The moral sense, or conscience, is as much part of man as his leg or arm. It is given to all human beings in a stronger or weaker degree, as force of members is given them in greater or less degree. It may be strengthened by exercise, as may any other particular limb of the body."

Wrong becomes right

It is the fervent hope of law-abiding and decent Jamaicans that our leaders would exercise their moral sense and conscience much more than is currently being done. Recent events indicate that the present Government has embarked on a dangerous course where it appears that the moral sense and conscience is absent from decision making.

The Jamaica Labour Party was correct in condemning MP Sharon Hay-Webster as sitting unconstitutionally in Parliament. Then, the MP was a member of the People's National Party (PNP). Now, Sharon has crossed the floor and joined the JLP, and suddenly what was wrong is now being embraced as right. Where is the moral sense and conscience that was passionately hoisted previously?

The appointment of Shahine Robinson to the Andrew Holness Cabinet is another case of absence of moral sense and conscience. Many people believed Mrs Robinson lied in her affidavit to the Supreme Court. In that affidavit, Mrs Robinson fell way short of the "honesty, integrity and truthfulness" that our church leaders demand.

The dithering and obfuscation about people employed to the public sector maintaining their cushy taxpayer-funded jobs while engaging in partisan political action speaks volumes about the indecency and loss of moral values impacting governmental decisions. Too many of the current players in Government were present in 2006 when the JLP called for the removal of Vando Palmer from the National Works Agency when he commenced political activities on behalf of the PNP. It seems that what was wrong in 2006 for a party in Opposition is now right for the same party in Government.

The promotion of the candidacy of someone who recently breached Cabinet orders reflects the putting of party interest over that of the nation. This cannot be morally right and is a dangerous course that needs to be stopped forthwith. This dangerous course has meandered through the valleys of the unconstitutional dismissal of the Public Service Commission; lingered at the disgraceful alley of Dudus extradition, where our major trading partner, the USA was lambasted and ridiculed; while political careers where put on the line in defence of a don who finally pleaded guilty to serious criminal offences.

It travelled through villages and communities emboldening and even 'rescuing' criminal elements to the detriment of our society. It is evident as government ministers seek political donations while carrying out their official duties. Stop signs such as conflict of interest are ignored. Onward to the destruction of decency, transparency, accountability and simply the old-fashioned virtue of honesty it moves, as too many of us chose to be passive observers.

Our failure to stop this dangerous course will ensure that we will, once again, "pay dearly, dearly" for our complicity and complacency.

Many of my columns over these seven years have focused on the promotion of principle-centred Government and vehement opposition to political expedience. I do this because I want to see our people thrive and rejoice as Proverbs 29:2 says, "When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan."

Lambert Brown is president of the University and Allied Workers Union. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and Labpoyh@yahoo.com.