$300m soap opera, but it is well worth it !

A country that cannot afford $10m to complete a report that chronological describes the single biggest economic failure in the history of Jamaica, can however easily find $200m pay a bunch of senior counsel and another $100m for accommodation, first class airline tickets, cellphone bills, meals etc.

How on earth can any sensible and rational person in Jamaica suggest to us that we should not focus on the $300m, but instead must focus on unearthing the “truth”.

I would like someone to point me to any previous enquiry, including one done previously in West Kingston where we got the truth, held someone accountable and made significant changes to ensure what occurred never happened again.

All this enquiry is likely to do is make a bunch or rich folks even richer and the poor and suffering people that more poorer as a result of the actions by the state in their search for the “truth”.

Jamaica is truly a basket case and its no wonder over 50% of the young people see no future in this country and would gladly throw away their Jamaican passports for one of a more progressive country.

I have lived in at least two Caribbean countries including Trinidad and Tobago and the big difference between those countries and Jamaica is the people even though aligned to their respective parties, see country first and party second and are fiercely loyal to their country.

I recall in the  mid 1980’s in Trinidad, where it was decided that one of the goals of that country, was to be the industrial giant of the Caribbean and the center of manufacturing excellence, regardless of which party happened to be in power.

Today Trinidad has largely achieved that mainly due to the will of the people in keeping the politicians honest and holding them accountable. It was not so much about the oil that Trindiad has, but the people making sure the politicians were working for the people and the country as they wanted to be the dominant country economically in the entire Caribbean.

I recall when I had just arrived in Trinidad all I saw on the streets were Nissan and Toyota vehicles and nothing like the high ended vehicles they ran around the city of Kingston. I soon found out that not only had Trinidad been assembling Nissan vehicles, but they also had restriction of foreign imports and getting a car into that country was like pulling teeth, they protected their markets fiercely.

Today Trinidad can spend the money they earned in those years and buy the luxury vehicles they want, as they have worked diligently to build the economy and can now afford to spend some of those earning

Jamaica today stands in the shadow of Trinidad, we continue to live above our means and resort to borrowing to support our expensive lifestyle including $100m homes and $20m cars that we have not earned enough to purchase.

We hire the best counsel money can buy and pay over $300m to get the “truth”, while our people die from  lack of basic health care at our hospitals.

Jamaica is truly making progress the Jamaican way.