Golding, left, and Munroe.
Dennise Williams, Staff Reporter
THE INSTITUTE of Chartered Accountants of Jamaica (ICAJ) held a forum on 'Crisis in Leadership? Searching for Solutions' at the Knutsford Court Hotel in Kingston on April 14th.
The presenters came from the public sector, the private sector and academia. They were:
Linroy Marshall, ICAJ president & partner, KPMG Peat Marwick
Peter Moses, CitiGroup Country Officer, Citibank NA
Dennis Chung, financial controller, Restaurants of Jamaica Limited
Theresa Easy, principal lecturer, School of Business Administration, UTech
Senator Professor Trevor Munroe, professor of Gov-ernment & Politics, UWI Mona & Government Senator
Senator Bruce Golding, Opposition Spokesman on Foreign Affairs & Foreign Trade.
The Financial Gleaner presents the highlights of the speeches made by both senators.
Senator Munroe highlighted the fact that in every country, leaders were viewed in a dim light. "The reason for this? Leaders have compromised basic values of honesty, integrity and humanity. Only Mandela and Mother Theresa are the exceptions to this rule."
FALL IN POPULAR ESTEEM BY LEADERS
Senator Munroe stated that because of the fall in popular esteem by leaders, "it is necessary to discuss how to rebuild trust, confidence and satisfaction with leaders."
Senator Golding believed that the public sector had the power to change laws when they didn't like them. "The public sector was a special creature because it has the exclusive authority to determine the laws, rules and regulations under which it operates. It is at liberty to do practically anything it wants! If the law forbids it, it changes the law. If no law exists, it simply enacts one! This raises the important issue of power the exercise of that power and issues of accountability."
Senator Munroe explained who is considered a 'public sector leader.'
"When I speak of public sector leadership, I speak of ministers, MPs, judges, police officers, Government companies, regulatory bodies, electricity, transport, telecommunications, etc."
And what is leadership?
Senator Munroe states, "Leadership is an influence and not a command relationship. It is interactive and reciprocal between leaders and followers who intend real change that reflect mutual purpose." And having purpose is the key element of leadership.
Explains Senator Golding, "The first responsibility of public sector leadership is to create a vision of what we want to achieve and what we want to be. I submit that public sector leadership must fashion out of that vision a mission that can be broken down into specific objectives and targets not just for the public sector bureaucracy but for the entire society."
Senator Golding then compared the vision for Jamaica with our island sisters. "The leadership in Barbados has defined its vision as making Barbados the smallest First World country in the world. The leadership of Trinidad has outlined its Vision 20/20 geared toward making Trinidad a fully developed country by 2020. I am obliged to ask what is our common vision for Jamaica?"
Senator Munroe suggests five guidelines for strengthening the fulfilment of public sector leadership responsibility. "Public sector leadership has to be team-based rather than centred on a single individual. The team captain must lead by example."
INDISPENSABLE PEOPLE
Senator Golding added, "I remember once attending a funeral at Dovecot with Hugh Shearer who pointed to the hundreds of grave markers across the plateau and said, "You know how many indispensable people are lying there?"
Senator Munroe continues, "Public sector leadership has the responsibility to communicate effectively, to consult meaningfully (outside the leadership team) with and fully transparent to all stakeholders. Public sector leadership has the responsibility to manage public resources efficiently, to function in a customer-friendly manner and, in a market-driven economy, to facilitate private sector investment, job creation and income generation. Public sector leadership has the responsibility to deal firmly with corruption. And public sector leadership has the responsibility to help bring the country and the people together."
Senator Golding summed up the role of public leaders by saying, "Political leadership must be prepared to risk its own political fortunes and, if necessary suffer its own demise if the reward is to see the country move closer to the attainment of its goals. Because every administration must be seen and must see itself as merely a runner in a relay, whose leg is crucial to eventual success."
