Errol Hewitt, Contributor"But they will reply, 'It's no use. We will continue with our own plans; each of us will follow the stubbornness of his own evil heart'" (Jeremiah 18:12)
In January, based on a poll, this newspaper published a list of the most popular new year's resolutions confirming that Jamaicans want a better life and, more so, a better-quality life.
Despite the weeks that have passed, most persons still hope for the best, even when it seems there is no palpable reason to hope. Such hope takes shape as a mental picture, our vision of what we would like to attain, but which we know from painful experience has to be achieved by careful planning and active pursuit.
As government is responsible for the secular environment which influences the lives and hopes of its citizens, the Holy Scriptures instruct the people to pray for their government. In respect of the Government, the Scriptures provide guidance, affirming that "without vision, the people perish" and advising that the plans derived from this national vision will fail if they are not noble and honest in intent and based on sound counsel.
Importance of planning
Economists, social planners, etc., endorse the critical importance of planning, underscoring that an agreed route forward motivates, unifies, instils purpose and makes economic sense.
The man in the street would say that this is common sense - though seemingly not so common here given the absence of any known national plan. Perhaps the unattractiveness with planning is that its progress is measurable, it requires commitment, discipline, a willingness to serve and work with others - characteristics which together are unpalatable to the selfish. The truth is, as Plato explained, people are always seeking their own glorification; each one seeking to satisfy the 'stubbornness of his own evil heart' even if it is to the detriment of the nation.
The repercussions of operating without a plan are obvious for example in transportation as an area of energy conservation. Our country's massive debt must be repaid, an effort which drastically restricts our effectiveness in tackling the range of the people's interests, especially those of the young and the poor.
This negative is compounded by the fact that more than 66 per cent of the income from our merchandise exports is used annually to purchase oil - i.e. about 14.4 per cent of gross domestic product. The major users are bauxite/alumina processing (36.1 per cent); electricity generation (24.3 per cent); and, amazingly, road transportation (22.2 per cent). It is clear that use of our roads is an enormous national expense in both funds and lives.
No thought-out plan
By far, the largest concentration of road transportation use is in the St. Catherine, Kingston and St. Andrew areas where about 43.3 per cent of our population lives, goes to school and work. With more than 60 per cent of our population 35 years old or younger, the rate of population growth is likely to accelerate meaningfully.
Given the present circumstances as regards road transportation, 10 years from now will possibly see utter chaos in traffic congestion, lost man hours, unaffordable petrol consum-ption and increasing road deaths.
As with the rest of the world, here then is a very obvious case for rapid rail mass transit which can more safely move large numbers in minimum time, expense and oil consumption, representing a more assured attempt at energy conservation and to free the budget to meet other pressing national essentials such as crime and health care more realistically.
Yet, despite this, our country enters contracts to develop a toll highway system which specifically negates any better option - including passenger rail service - and, by so doing, locks us into exclusive passenger transportation by road as the decided way forward.
This is directly opposite to decisions in similar circumstances in most countries in the rest of the world. Obviously, our government does not see its transportation policy as relevant to its overall energy policy or having any reference to the national budget or the real needs of its citizens, present and future. The centrality of ethanol in current declarations cannot obliterate the fact that it is, at best, supplemental to more serious policy decisions like rapid rail passenger transit.
The continued policy of decisions based only on favoured personalities is wasteful, insulting to our people and in this case, a disastrous decision.
Similarly, in tourism, we may assume that the proliferation of hotels is part of a considered plan, but if this exists, its insufficiency is imme-diately obvious from the continuing inadequacy of training and housing for staff, the volume of potable water, sewage treatment, electricity supply, etc.
The comparative low level of retained earnings, encroachment of developments on areas which should be protected because of environ-mental and historical concerns, as well as our citizens' rights of access to an adequate number of acceptable beaches, all suggest the absence of any well thought-out plan or focus on our citizens' interest - an apt description of an archetypal colonial scene.
Reconfigure government
It is crucial that our political leadership begin to demonstrate maturity by agreeing on a national strategic plan compiled by participants from the socio-economic sectors and guided by Jamaicans with the necessary experience and expertise who are readily available both locally and in the diaspora.
It should include the points mentioned earlier, and in respect of our economy, take account of the total implications of the increasing emergence of both India and the People's Republic of China.
The whole organisation of government must be reconfigured to achieve the national goals. Information and communication technology must at long last be used in this country to not only reduce the size of the bloated civil service, but also to demonstrate the practicality of effectively reducing the number of ministries, while enhancing performance.
The national plan should, therefore, include productive opportunities for the unemployed and retrained ex-civil servants.
The political system needs a culture which acknowledges the supremacy of the interest of the nation and is resolved to dismiss incompetent ministers and refuses to appoint the inept. Ministers must return to being really in charge of their ministries, instead of being 'honorary' chairmen solely bent on photograph opportunities and sheltered from blame.
The civil service needs to be freed of its suffocating feudal culture which embraces the growing number of 'pretenders' who 'spin the spin' and fall in line, while discouraging and displacing those with good potential but who are seen as career threats.
Jamaica urgently requires a civil service grounded on rewarding merit rather than ascription and viciously protecting 'turf' - a service to which a level of competence must be restored as when, not too long ago, it was the toast of international institutions.
In this new year, the problem of the current high interest rates and the national debt must at last be addressed seriously and consistently [election year or not] and a new, more facilitating tradition beadopted by both government and our financial institutions towards small productive and innovative businesses as well as individuals.
It must also orient education and training towards the goals of the national plan, ensuring the participation of the mass of the people into national life, with a focus on utilising their creativity and flare for innovation - this latter considered a premium in today's market place.
It is with all these factors in mind that a full community development programme needs to become an urgent priority.
Our country has always had the potential for a constellation of viable projects - from returning to the nurture and marketing of exotic fruits to rekindling our 17th to 19th-century reputation for health tourism. What we have lacked is the seriousness to plan and execute nationally - because of favoured personalities often inserting their own biased interest for the limited funds.
Essential priority
Essential to all this must be a determined effort to rid our people as far as possible of the social and psychological baggage from slavery which has held us back from accelerated progress; which has ingrained our 'crabs-in-the-barrel' selfishness; which has deprived us of our history and pride in ourselves as a people of impressive past accomplishments and future potential.
We must address the circumstances that inhibit so many of our males from becoming men; which cause many of our young people to bleach their skin; the circumstance that makes us think of ourselves as less than God made us to be and our long history as a people proves us to be.
Crucial to our development effort must be to have our people acquire knowledge of themselves and thereby self-esteem, and at last to return them, as the Scriptures put it, to 'their right minds,' a sense of dignity and pride as a people.
We must commission our historians, sociologists, social anthropologists and psychologists in these pursuits.This is an investment we dare not ignore if we truly believe our people are our best asset and our youth represents our future.
Then will our celebration of emancipation be truly meaningful; then will the contribution of our heroes be fully realised; then will we have attained our divine given role as a positive example to the world [and especially to our brothers and sisters in Africa] of a people who have known the depths of wretchedness and nevertheless have climbed to the mountain top.
'When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you.' - African proverb
Errol Hewitt is an information and communication technology planning consultant with the United Nations and the Commonwealth Secretariat.
