Delroy Chuck NATIONALLY, SO much has gone wrong and continues to go wrong. The real problem is that when things go wrong, we fail to correct them we simply hide the errors, forget the wrongs and, misguidedly, hope to move on. Yet, wrongs must be corrected; otherwise, they are likely to continue. Jamaica is a nation in distress, decaying, stagnating, and in spite of efforts to promote what is going right and the positive side of our national life, things continue to go wrong. Why do we cover up wrongdoing and hope they are just nine-day wonders?
When Prime Minister P.J. Patterson, boldly declared in Parliament, more than six years ago, that the law is not a shackle but a tool for social engineering, it was a statement fraught with danger and without merit. There was no excuse for the Prime Minister to make such a statement and, even worse, no excuse for failing to correct or withdraw the statement.
What message do we send when we say the law, the rule of law which binds a people together, is not a shackle, and when and for whom is it a shackle? Even the second part of the statement that the law should be used as a tool of social engineering is preposterous. It is wrong to believe, like Stalin and Hitler, that human beings can be tossed, moulded and engineered into one's own liking. To use the law for social engineering, I submit, is tyrannical and wrong.
THE LACK OF SINCERITY
When Dr. Omar Davies indiscreetly admitted he allowed spending to run away during the October 2002 General Election campaign, which, if it were another time, he would have contained, he was implying he had done wrong, which he now has to correct. What were his and the Government's reaction and response? Not even the hint of an apology or admission that he acted wrongly and irresponsibly.
Indeed, even a parliamentary motion of censure was defeated by the Government, which backed its embattled Minister of Finance and sought to exonerate him. Now, with the election behind us, the country has to endure the most massive tax package in its history to correct the fiscal imprudence of the Minister of Finance. Surely, a fulsome public apology and publicly offering to resign were the proper course to take, even if the offer of resignation was refused!
Yet, in Jamaica, unlike the gentlemanly conduct of Westminster-styled democracies, ministers and public officials rarely offer to resign, they are forced to do so. Is it any wonder the people gave the PNP a wonderful 'backsiding' in the Local Government elections to signal their discontent and disappointment? And, it may not be long before the people send further messages to the Government that enough is enough!
If we want to put Jamaica back on the right track, we can start by identifying the wrongs and quickly correct them. We can start by changing the mindset of our people who refuse to appreciate and understand that certain actions are wrong, simply wrong and cannot be justified.
JUSTIFYING WRONGDOING
I listen to people, with great disappointment and distress, who easily justify and excuse wrongdoing because it is expedient to do so. The recent mob killing of the alleged rapist in St. Mary was wrong but there are many who spoke openly on the talk shows that the killing was justifiable and they could see nothing wrong in the raging mob meting out vigilante justice.
The spate of killings in Mountain View, and other communities, can easily be explained by the lack of faith and confidence in the justice system to correct the wrongs. Gangs believe revenge and retaliation are the best signals to dispense community justice and to assert power and control over turf.
Well, if members of the security forces can, so far, remain immune to prosecution even after the state terrorism in Tivoli, the killing of seven young boys in Braeton, the many allegations of cold-blooded murders, the criminal abuses and infringement of human rights, then why shouldn't the gangs and their cohorts believe that they too are immune. Where are the responsible and courageous members of the security forces who can come forward and expose the many wrongdoings inside the security forces' operations?
And, if members of the security forces do not have the courage and strength of character to expose internal wrongdoings, why should we expect members of the community to expose the wrongdoings of the gangs, gunmen and goons?
PREVENTING THE DESCENT INTO ANARCHY
To be sure, far too many citizens are willing to accept and justify state killings, abuses and injustice meted out to the voiceless and vulnerable in our inner cities, because the victims are labelled criminals, gunmen or community dons.
Lawlessness, corruption, and indiscipline, from any quarter, must stop before we descend into total anarchy; but that can only happen if one by one we find and punish them. In truth, the moral fibre of our nation is constantly eroded when we overlook corruption, injustice, lawlessness and wrongdoings of any description. We are a society in crisis because we have lost our moral compass, our sense of right and wrong, our sense of nationhood and our duty to protect and promote the rights and freedoms of our people. It is time we recover our moral direction and we can start by correcting the many wrongs and punishing those who cause them.
Delroy Chuck is an attorney-at-law and Opposition Member of Parliament. He can be contacted by e-mail at delchuck@hotmail.com.
