Money a go run

by Garth Rattray

Every time a general election is imminent, many groups of people interspersed across the island look forward to the event because, traditionally, millions in cash magically appear and are distributed as 'encouragement' to enthusiastically support and cast votes in favour of their benefactors.

This show of appreciation, or vote-buying, takes place in communities that defy all the statistical norms by being unnaturally and predominantly skewed towards one particular major political party or another. I can't name the communities, because I am not bulletproof and I don't know the source of the funds or the identity of the providers of the boundless bounty. I won't call the distribution precincts 'political garrisons' because, as ironic as it sounds, it is no longer politically correct to do so.

No meaningful social or economic change has occurred, therefore nothing has happened to render that well-earned nomenclature obsolete. In other words, although no one has significantly changed the circumstances within those communities, they don't want anyone to call a spade a spade, ostensibly because they believe that calling a spade a spade makes the spade a spade.

Mysterious millions

In alluding to those mysterious millions, I am not referring to the Constituency Development Fund (CDF), which is a legitimate and designated funding system used by members of parliament to finance essential personal assistance/needs, sustainable community projects and infrastructure development. And, I am not referring to other 'safety net' programmes like the Jamaica Social Investment Fund.

I am simply referring to the well-known 800-pound gorilla in the room that everyone tries to ignore because it mashes hundreds of thousands of corns and it facilitates political expediency. So, no one will admit to this practice except within the relevant and interlocking circles of the benefactors and the beneficiaries.

The practice of 'letting off' money promotes and perpetuates the freeness mentality, the dependency syndrome and the backward and insular idea that there must be reciprocity (you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours') in deciding who to vote for.

Consequently, many people - from all classes but especially from the lower class - vote for individuals or for the political party which will provide cash, kind or employment for them (without consideration for the supporters of the losing political party who will be left out in the cold).

Power brokers to blame

I am never too quick to stand from my vantage point and sternly judge those people who vote for what they can get. Destitution, desperation, frustration, disempowerment, hunger and stark panic over the very real prospect of a bleak future for oneself and/or one's family will lead to such a practice.

Being poor or being totally dependent on politics/politicians for a livelihood imbues that ilk of the electorate with tunnel vision. They cannot see the big picture. They cannot see what is good for the entire nation - they are far too occupied just trying to survive and, to be perfectly honest, I cannot blame them.

The blame, therefore, lies with the movers, shakers, power brokers and the leaders. If we want to stop Jamaica from being so utterly dependent on imports from other countries for sustenance; if we want to encourage self-reliance and entrepreneurship; if we want to promote and increase productivity; if we are serious about reducing corruption and crime, we must start by pooling those many millions (that come from whatever source) and put them to good use by repairing, upgrading and enhancing the poor communities, on both sides of the political divide, with a view to making them more habitable and commercially viable.

Handing out money - especially at this time - may get the voters out, but in the long run, the practice is detrimental on every conceivable level.

Garth A. Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and garthrattray@gmail.com.