Letter of the Day January 26, 1999
Wake up, Mr. Prime Minister!
THE EDITOR, Madam::
The great majority of Jamaican people have become disillusioned by our system of justice and also by the political system. They do not see themselves as being a part of these systems and structures. In recent times the incidents where people have taken the law into their own hands are no longer isolated incidents; instead, they became the norm.
How else do we explain what happened in Savanna-la-Mar recently? I am of the view that the people were already seething with frustration and were waiting for the first opportunity to show it.
The problem is that the people of Savanna-la-Mar are not alone. All over this country there is a seething mass of frustration just waiting for the right opportunity to express itself. In addition, there are criminal elements in our society who insist on using the gun as a way of life.
The Prime Minister needs to awaken to these terrifying conditions. He must find ways of dealing with the criminal elements in the country and also with the wave of frustration and hopelessness which is threatening to overwhelm us. The combination of frustration and access to fire-power is an extremely dangerous one and it is time that the Prime Minister realises this.
We must either institute swift, radical and orderly changes to our political, justice and economic systems or be willing to face a situation where frustrated persons along with criminal elements will totally overthrow these systems.
My suggestion to the Prime Minister is that he repents for his neglect and stubbornness. He and other Members of Parliament should immediately stop whatever they are involved in and go to their constituencies to listen to the cries of their constituents. This is a chance for the Prime Minister to rescue the country from disaster. Mr. Prime Minister, if you do nothing now history will place you in the same class as Nero who fiddled while Rome burned.
The Christians of this country must share the blame for all that is taking place. Many churches have been more concerned with concrete and steel than with reaching the poor and needy, particularly those in the inner-city areas. We have also not been concerned about matters of justice which we know our God is so concerned about. As we pray in repentance for ourselves and our country let us remember that we are not apart from the solution but that we, with the help of God, can be part of the solution to these mammoth problems.
I am, etc.,
SHIRLEY P. RICHARDS (Mrs.)
Attorney-at-law
Let's have the real figures, please
THE EDITOR, Madam:
I cannot help but take Commissioner Forbes' claim to the first crime reduction since 1988 with a grain of salt.
Statistics can be used to sensationalise, inflate, deflate, confuse or oversimplify, among other things. If we are not careful how we report social trends the result will only be semantic and "statisculation". In the face of blatant crime increases, we the citizens must now speculate as to whether there was some typographical error or inaccurately compiled data, incompetence of the statistician or whether Mr. Forbes blundered innocently.
Mr. Forbes is what statisticians would call the OK. man to give the statistics. This means that he has authority to give the crime statistics. Artemus Ward said that it is not so much the things that we don't know that gets us in trouble, it is what we know that is not so.
I would like to ask Mr. Forbes: what of the unreported crimes? How accurate is the recording system?
Even as I type this letter I am watching the first T.V. news of the murder of Tess Thomas, a woman who gave so much to this country. What a pay back for such sterling service!
Until the nation is disarmed and the sentences for crime are stiffer; parents made to answer for their children; and the ports of embarkation and disembarkation are more rigidly monitored, half of this nation will be slain for no good reason.
Crime is at an all-time high and neither the parliamentarians nor the police department have effectively managed to handle crime even at a fair or appreciable level.
I am, etc.,
E. WILLIAM REITT
The question of teachers' salaries
THE EDITOR, Madam:
Recentlt there has been quite a lot of talk about teachers' salaries and many persons have given their views on the topic. I would like to bring some facts to the attention of your readers. The following figures are the salaries of teachers:
* Trained teachers diploma $17,877.50 - $21,296-08 per month
* Trained teacher certificate $17,417.50 - $20,600.58 per month
* Graduate pre-trained $17,959-75 - $21808.33 per month
* Graduate trained $26,456.83 - $31414.66 per month
All teachers receive allow-ances amounting to $6,765.00. This covers material/equipment, laundry and uniform. I must point out that the above figures are before tax and other deductions are made.
I have heard a commentator on radio stating that teachers' salary has doubled several times over the past five years. Should he be right, then it begs the question, "what were the teachers getting prior to those five years?"
I am also asking your readers to compare the above figures and qualifications with those of our elected Parish Councillors. They receive the paltry sum of $39,000 monthly.
Madam, while it may be true that some teachers do very little for the salary they receive, there are those who not only teach but spend late hours preparing lessons, marking books and test papers.
I am really hoping that readers will carefully look at the above figures and try to conclude if the teachers have a just claim.
I am, etc.,
W.F. JOSEPHS
Alexandria P.O.
St. Ann
Moving forward with agriculture
THE EDITOR, Madam:
Walk into any fast food restaurant and you will see business flourishing.
Walk into any supermarket you will see the same. These are all food-based businesses. One could easily draw the conclusion that farming is alive and well in Jamaica, but this is not so.
A close examination of the food on the shelves or when questions are asked of the restaurants as to the origin of the food, it will reveal in both cases that, if not all, the majority of the food is imported.
Why then has demand gone from the local farmers, the same farmers who after the devastation of "Gilbert" rose up and put food back on the nation's table? Why was the momentum unsustainable?
The era of globalisation brought with it subsidised cheap surplus food from the more developed countries. Our local farmers were caught flat-footed. If globalisation is here to stay then survival is a must.
I believe the local farmers backed by research and advanced technology can survive. The market is showing preference for some locally grown food such as carrot, cabbage and tomato, due to their flavour.
The country is blessed by good all-year-round weather, which we should exploit .
We have to adopt a new and different approach to consistently present our products to the market. The traditional way of presenting half-baked, partially deteriorating products can no longer stand up to the competition.
We need central packing stations where products can be graded, packed and distributed in refrigerated trucks.
The farmer should concentrate more on production in order to consistently supply the market.
We need marketing-oriented Agri-Managers who can effectively develop strategies to match supply with demand.
As we approach the new millennium we have to create an approach where less people are involved in the actual production through mechanisation and more people by virtue of advanced technology benefit directly or indirectly.
Agriculture is fundamentally important to our survival, it is the greatest area of production and involves most of our people.
Agriculture is the way forward.
I am, etc.,
LINDEN PEART
Schawfield
Falmouth P.O.
Trelawny
High time for price cuts
THE EDITOR, Madam:
Our domestic costs seem way too high making us uncompetitive both locally and internationally in many products. These in-creasing costs are fuelled by devaluations of the Jamaican dollar which cause us to not only pay more for our imports, but also our local goods and service and labour. Earners of foreign exchange will, quite rationally, want as much as they can get for their foreign exchange particularly when domestic costs are rising. However, we need large increases in export volumes.
The entire country has to become export-focused. Government, exporters and earners of foreign exchange must co-operate to provide lower prices for foreign exchange. Lower prices should force down domestic costs, particularly if Government leads by example and reduces the prices of its utilities and other services under its control. More than one-third of my utility bills is a price mechanism formula relating to the price of foreign exchange.
The question is what downward movement in the price of foreign exchange would be required to generate significant reduction in our domestic costs, and what effect this reduction in domestic costs would have on the bottom line when set off against lower domestic prices for foreign exchange receipts.
I believe that there is room for trade-offs and co-operation, in the search for large increases in export volumes and foreign exchange earnings.
To compete, we must retool and have top-of-the-line equipment and raw materials. These must be made available from overseas, since we cannot yet make them.
We have seen the rate of price increases being reduced substantially, it is now time to roll back the prices.
I am, etc.,
CARLTON A. STEWART
18 Lochart Avenue
Kingston 20
Why Nora drowned
THE EDITOR, Madam:
The first major investment I made on the stock exchange came after I had done some careful analysis. The stock chosen was that of one of the finest companies in Jamaica. I invested what was, for me, a large sum of money... and waited.
When the price of the stock started to fall, I saw this as an even greater opportunity and borrowed heavily to invest further. The price of the stock continued falling. I eventually ended up losing what was for me a small fortune. I learnt the painful lesson that you cannot fight the market, particularly if you are poor. The lesson I learnt is one those in charge of divesting state-owned enterprises seem to have difficulty comprehending. Unfortunately, they are doing so at the expense of the Jamaican taxpayer.
The government talked the talk of free markets but when market conditions were good for the sale of assets, they found it easier to borrow funds than to make the sacrifice and sell assets at prices that would attract buyers. Now asset values are lower and market conditions even worse. But the assets must be sold as the Jamaican economy has for years been sinking under an unsustainable debt load which is growing as more loss-making enterprises are being acquired and the interest piles up on the old debt. Attempts to unload major assets locally have not been particularly successful with the state having had to reopen its purse in some high-profile cases.
I admit that it is not a pleasant thought that we should sell off key elements of the Jamaican economy to foreign interests at bargain basement prices, but the alternative is continued stagnation and heavier taxes to pay for the rising debt. There is a Jamaican folk tale about a girl called Nora who refuses to give an ackee to Dry River when the river demands it in payment for allowing her to cross. Nora drowned.
I am, etc.
ANDREW GREEN
Via Go-Jamaica
Gov't must take a strong hand against crime
THE EDITOR, Madam:
As a Jamaican living in the United States, I oftentimes have the urge to return to my roots. That entails me visiting Jamaica at least once a year. Recently, I have had to reconsider fulfilling this urge due to the escalating crime rate now being experienced in Jamaica. Sad to say, Jamaica is now awash with criminals and this segment of the population is vastly increasing everyday.
I am of the opinion that the government is not doing enough to protect the innocent citizens and visitors of this tranquil Caribbean island. With the practising policy of the United States & Canada in deporting Jamaican-born individuals who are now considered criminals (be it petty or otherwise), it is my firm belief that the government has a responsibility to the innocent Jamaicans to do all within its power to make society safe and as crime-free as possible.
That leaves the government with a mind boggling decision - 'what to do with the deportees' and I am not talking about the motor vehicles. As a country we cannot just sit back and allow these derelicts and thugs to take over our society. Crime is the number one hindrance for people not returning to our island, whether they are tourists, residents wishing to come home, or the elderly who are retiring and would prefer to do so in Jamaica.
The Jamaican economy thrives on foreign currency. We should be smart enough to realise that attracting individuals to retire in Jamaica would contribute a hefty amount in the foreign currency coffers. The beauty of this is that this money is regular, certain, and costs the country nothing. I think the people of Jamaica need to hear what plans the government has to deal with the escalating crime rate. This urgent situation requires both short-term and long-term action plans. We have to be realistic and recognise that most of the individuals being 'shipped home' against their will may never be able to fit in with the Jamaican way of life, and some have no desire to do so for various reasons. They may be unemployable, untrained, unskilled, or may have no desire to actually work for a living.
I am, etc.
SHARON McWHINNEY
Via Go-Jamaica