Amina Blackwood Meeks
MISS LADY sey she is very concerned that Jing Bang is going to learn de hard way dat trute is nat a popular ting and wan of dese days it is going to get har into big trubble.
People is nat going to employ har because, as they say in Antigua, har tongue nuh gat nuh bone.
Jing Bang's self-defence is dat she come from good stock. She claim sey is same way Marcus Garvey did stay. Him look round two time an see a ting is to be done an him doan see nobody meck like dem is going to do it and him declare, "I will".
Well, she claims sey she hearing plenty talk bout referendum an she nat seeing anybody stepping forward to conduck de kind of public consultation dat needs to be conducted.
So she out dere now outa road a conduck har own referenda, ascardin to har de one dat is not to be confused with ref-verandah, tings people refer for cocktail talk pan dem verandah an know in dem hearts dat it is nat going any furder. No, she mean fe teck fe har nuff-nuff cause dem as far as har back can manage.
THE PLIGHT OF SUGAR
First to commence, she wants to refer de plight of de sugar price an de whole heap of sufferation dat is consequent upon de arbitrary price slashing an simultaneous price fixing by people who out fe pin de blame of fe dem diabetes by de sweetness of odda people cane sugar. Beat we outa fe dem market.
Much to har dismay, no European court will take up de case. JB sey dat is a clear indication dat we mus have fe we owna court an we owna market fe deal wid fe we owna tings. She do not quite undastand how should we or shouldn't we still into dat.
Missis Queen obviously and unequivocally run we outa har wintery cole courthouse an we still want to refer the matter as to whether we shudda come out or not.
Plus Her Royal Highness is a tea drinker. She knows nuttin of how a good cup of coffee sweetened wid coconut milk can run cole. An not being a coffee drinker has not de slightest interest in de case of de 6000 coffee farmers who do not know if dem family is going to survive dis present hurricane season, wus like how nobaddi doan speak to dem since de laas one. In JB's estimation dat is a matter for a referendum.
Seeing as how Jamaican coffee is a serious part a we identity worldwide, an plenty tourist come yah fe drink it should we or shouldn't we compel de highest authority in de land, which is de Queen's lawful representative fe tell de Queen sey debts are to be written off. She is to put back de issue of reparation ova slavery pan de agenda so dat funds can be made available fe secure de coffee, secure de jobs of umpteen coffee farmers and dere dependents an secure we brand an identity pan de world market.
Well JB surmise sey de lawful representative is not going to carry any such message, has not carried any such message in de past an is unlikely to be so persuaded in de future. Consequently, she is calling a referendum on should they stay or should they go?
'She quite expects it to be a stormy debate and coming so early in de tourist season she expeck nuff people fe bex wid God dat afta dem dun call referendum fe tourist get free passport, fe come an eat hamburger while dem sun-tanning, God blow fe him own referendaum about wedda dem cudden go nuff place else in de worl go find fe dem identity pan a big yellow an red sign saying 'Hamburgers are Us'.
Anyway, dat referendum come back sey it is not easy to know de way of the Lord, nor de way of tourists for room full an hall a full up same way, an it still deh pan teevee bout how IMF gi wi pass mark an declare dat nutten can turn back de prosperity what bring ova all Jamaica. Well some people cannot pass de wata mark of where Storm and Company trample. Dem pay de price of IMF designated prosperity.
RESPECT FOR JAMAICANS
JB wants to call a referendum on de way we treat wan annedda. She sey shortly after 'Dennis' blow she was pan de highway, de toll road. Never mind de fack sey everytime she go pan it, she laas a go roun in circles or de fack dat people sey dem hear sey some a de signs dem nuh have nuh road yet, so ef yu falla dem yu mus lass. We need a referendum pan dat.
But is nat dat she talking bout now. Is how she deh pan de highway a contemplate how nuff a we own Jamaicans meck sacrifice or are sacrificed everyday fe adda Jamaicans can boas how dem a prosper. For while she deh pan de highway a save 20 minutes, har min deh pan de banns a storm-blow people who kean even find a piece a bamboo fe crass de dutty wata what 'Gilbert', 'Ivan' and 'Dennis' leff where once upon a time dere was a road. IMF never see dat?
Dem never go which part drain clean out but all de tings dat come out dere leff same place pan de drain side till rain come an put it right back in de drain chu because de contrack only award to clean out de drain not to take away what come out of it.
Jing Bang want a referendum on efficiency an how it conneck to people spirit a prosper fe see dat tings a gwaan right.
She want a referendum bout all de decent, honest hard-working Jamaicans who have to wait till dem reach pensionable age to can finally afford to get a mortgage an wake up wan day to de discovery dat developers put an entire housing scheme into a pond an all authorities can say is dat is nat dem who authorise such a ting and dem don't know is who dweet.
JB wants a referendum bout de kind of prosperity that comes from knowing dat somebody in charge of what dem colleck taxpayers money to be in charge of.
Miss Lady sey at dat point wan smaddy try tell Jing Bang sey a nuh everyting good fe eat fe talk and de implications of dat was too much fe JB.
She call fe a referendum on de freedom fe talk yu mind widout fear of victimisation, freedom from people who confuse a functional position backa a desk wit control over odda people life an dem sovereignty, freedom from people who use offices of public trust fe private vendetta.
INDICES OF PROSPERITY
She wants a referendum pan de distinguishing features between discourse dat advance prosperity and de whole heap a passa passa bout who fe tun mayor an who fe tun out of de mayor's parlour an who get more money dan who chu party affiliation and she want some index bout how public servants conduct demself fe set tone of peace an harmony and disagreeing witout de disagreeable scrambling fe ratings.
She sey having people we can look up to an proud of how dem conduck we business mus figure as part of de prosperity. JB wants a referendum on whether to accept any IMF pronouncement bout we condition an put dem praise above what people a bawl out sey dem really experiencing and how dem feel bout what a gwaan.
So JB wants a referendum for a national point of reference of the indices of prosperity. She sey she personally believe dat prosperity is a inside job dat doan need no outside validation and no storm kean blow it whey. But she willing fe wait an see how de referendum turn out.
