Heather Robinson
THE MAJORITY of protests in Jamaica end with a common appeal: "I/we are calling on the authorities to do something now." This demand or appeal comes from ordinary members of the community and elected officials alike. This vague reference to the 'authorities' is used in most instances as a reference to the minister with portfolio responsibility for the problem, be it roads or water. Some members of the media have also found themselves trapped into using this reference as an easy way out of trying to find out which is the responsible government agency or ministry. But how far can we really
expect to take this call on the 'authorities'?
One articulate resident of the flooded Kennedy Grove housing scheme on Sunday last, listed all the government agencies that are responsible for the dilemma of the residents there. She included in her list the Clarendon Parish Council, which she felt should have placed advertisements advising prospective purchasers of the possible dangers they would face. Anyone who has been in a house that water has flooded can empathise very well with these residents. Having had one such experience in 1978, I cannot begin to imagine what it is like to have had multiple experiences of flooding.
ACCEPTED SOME RESPONSIBILITY
One 'authority', the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA), has accepted some responsibility for the flooding of Kennedy Grove, citing poor recommendations as the reason. That is a step in the right direction. The question that NEPA needs to also answer is what will become of the employee/ employees who made the recommendation for the housing development to be built.
Can we as taxpayers expect the principal officer in agencies, such as NEPA, parish councils, the National Works Agency and the National Water Commission, to accept responsibility for every recommendation that is made? Or should these officers visit each and every proposed development before placing their approval stamps? And what about the relevant minister? Should he or she not be able to rely on the advice that is given by public servants employed to do a job?
We also need to decide whether as citizens we have any responsibility that we can execute on our own when purchasing a home. There are some simple things that we can do without relying on the 'authorities'. Firstly, now is the best time to visit the location of your intended purchase. Jamaica has been experiencing several weeks of heavy rainfall, and this will give you an idea of how your real estate purchase has weathered the recent rains. Talking to neighbours, especially older members of the community, is another way of getting information.
PROTECTING OURSELVES
There are so many simple things that we can do to protect ourselves from the big disasters that necessitate government intervention, while at the same time, there is one thing that Government does that I have never been able to understand. Have you ever noticed how potholes are filled? My observation over the years indicates that there is a minimum size qualification that a pothole has to satisfy before it is considered a priority for filling.
It appears that those who fill potholes have been told by the 'authority' that holes that are less than 12 inches wide should be left alone. Someone in authority needs to begin to accept the fact that potholes do not shrink, they only grow bigger like any untreated sore does. So if the hole is only six inches, why not fill it at that size instead of waiting until it gets to two or three feet, which is far more expensive for the taxpayer.
Whenever the call is made on the relevant authority to act again, those who are government workers who have failed to do what they are being paid to do should begin to find ways of correcting the problem and it cannot be good enough to be unavailable and in meetings. Taxpayers all know the name of the minister of housing, but how many know who is the permanent secretary in this ministry?
The converse is also true. Some government agencies have been so tied to the head of the organisation that persons who have problems with getting satisfactory service believe that it is their right to speak directly to persons such as Mrs. Patricia Holness at the Registrar General's Department. When next a call is made on the 'authorities' do not just think of the elected or appointed politician, think also about the public servant who is paid on the 25th of each month.
Note: In the tabulation of election results accompanying my column of Friday, October 14, Anthony Spaulding was incorrectly listed as the PNP candidate for St. Andrew South in 1989. The candidate was Hartley Jones.
Heather Robinson is a Life Underwriter and former Member of Parliament.
