The Editor, Sir:

In any country it is expected that a democratically elected government will act at all times in the national interest, and the move by Minister of Industry and Commerce Karl Samuda to immediately suspend the export of scrap metals from the island is a move to protect this interest. The scrap metal merchants and the hustlers who sell them goods have now pushed the proverbial envelope too far, when recently the National Works Agency and the National Water Commission revealed that thieves had removed numerous bridge rails, water pump cables and pipes from some of their facilities, much to the inconvenience and danger to the public.

First, it was the railway lines owned by Jamalco in Clarendon, and now this. Even the KSAC has been complaining about the removal of manhole covers and cross-drain grids. Cable and Wireless Jamaica Ltd. has over the past year suffered over $70 million in loss of its cables, and numerous householders have been feeling the effects of these marauding scoundrels daily, as items are removed from their yards.

Immediate effect

The immediate effect of this action will indeed deprive some persons of an income, but somewhere in the back of their minds they should remember that national assets are out of bounds as it will be taxpayers, particularly PAYEs, who will have to replace stolen items. Moreover, the purchasers and exporters of scrap metals are to be held accountable, as they are the ones who benefit most and owe a duty to this country to advise their workers not to steal goods being sold to them.

Exporters should indeed be licensed and subject to mandatory declarations of all goods being shipped by them. In addition, their operations should be subject to inspections by the National Solid Waste Management Authority and the police, and where contraventions are discovered punitive fines should be imposed. Another problem that has not caught the attention of many is the fact that there are environmental problems being created at many of these sites, particularly in the storage of used automotive batteries for export.

Enough is enough, and despite the fact that the business is providing employment for many youths in the Riverton City area and is ridding the country of unsightly garbage, it should not be at the cost of losing national assets and the theft of people's property. Like every other good in commerce, once there is a buyer there will be a seller and only the law will act to regulate this practice. It should always be remembered that the national interest is greater than any personal one.

I am, etc.,

DUDLEY I. H. McFARLANE

dudsjnr@hotmail.com

Via Go-Jamaica