As we look back on the life of Edward Phillip George Seaga and the impression we had of him based on the narrative from the PNP and the media, we are now beginning to recognize , the true value of critical thinking.
What exactly is critical thinking.
I picked up this definition
Critical thinking is the ability to think clearly and rationally, understanding the logical connection between ideas.
In essence, critical thinking requires you to use your ability to reason. It is about being an active learner rather than a passive recipient of information.
Critical thinkers rigorously question ideas and assumptions rather than accepting them at face value. They will always seek to determine whether the ideas, arguments and findings represent the entire picture and are open to finding that they do not.
Critical thinkers will identify, analyse and solve problems systematically rather than by intuition or instinct.
I have highlighted what for me is the biggest take away of the critical thinking process and how we have failed in Jamaica to use this to ferret out the nonsense being perpetrated by those with access to the media and the media itself.
Having for years been using the above as a way of life, I decided to begin this blog back in 2009 ( 10 years ago) as not only did I recognize that much of what I was reading was poorly researched and presented, I actually found that person would deliberately manipulate the facts then add their tainted opinions, then present the results as factual data.
Too many Jamaicans refuses to ask questions to get to the truth and therefore end up accepting any information that suits their biases or their personal agenda. If you hear lies often enough, especially if its sprinkled with a pinch of truth, you will become a believer.
Jamaica is desperately in need of critical thinkers who can now push back at the purveyors of deceit.
Dr Peter Phillips in his quest to remain relevant , despite the fact that his best years have past, continues to suggest that despite the growth being seen in the country, it is not reaching everyone.
He asserts that inequality continues to be a major problem in the country and is demanding that the government does a better job in this regard.
Dr Peter Phillips appears to still believe in the rejected philosophy of socialism, which in its ideal state seeks to create “equality” for all.
Let me first begin by suggesting that the idea of equality should not be the goal but instead the focus ought to be equity, which seems lost in the heads of some PNP folks.
You would NEVER hear businessmen such as Mark Golding or Peter Bunting speak about “equality” but you would more than likely hear them speak about “equity”, so you may ask what’s the difference .
Equity is giving everyone what they need to be successful. Equality is treating everyone the same. Equality aims to promote fairness, but it can only work if everyone starts from the same place and needs the same help
So the call for equality is not only misplaced but its the same old socialist mentality that seeks to make the issue of wealth creation and profit motive a “sin” in the eyes of people like Peter Phillips
If Peter Phillips wants equality, why doesn’t he sell his house and buy one in the garrisons which he represents and use the difference to help those to have an house equal to his.
Conversely , why doesn’t he help members of his constituents to earn enough so they can have the money to have a house such as he has and live the life style he enjoys.
Why it should be the job of someone else to create the non-existent and impossible “economic equality” and not ours.
Peter Phillips has been part of a PNP leadership that has governed Jamaica for 22.5 years out of the last 30 years, how has he used that period to create the “equality” of which he now demands.
Peter Phillips, needs a new narrative, which is is simple incapable of giving and as a result, he will be rejected by the people of his own party and those of Jamaica, who are all excited about the prosperity currently being seen across the country.
The amount of misinformation perpetrated about this wonderful nation building is downright criminal on the path of the traditional media organizations in Jamaica.
It turns out that a lot of people from 30 to 50’s have no clue about the life and work of Eddie until the day of his death, when the real truth was being told.
To help you understand the depth and insight of the man, here are a list of his major achievements.
1968: Promoted the Jamaica Stock Exchange;
1969: Created Jamaica Development Bank;
1969: Establishment of decimalisation of the Jamaican currency: substitution of pounds, shillings and pence for dollars and cents
1969: Conceived and implemented the Jamaicanisation of financial institutions — (banks and insurance companies) — to secure 25 per cent share ownership for Jamaicans. As a result, several merchant banks were established to transfer 25 per cent ownership of foreign banks by sale of shares to Jamaicans, and full transfer of ownership of all insurance companies to Jamaicans on the decision of the owners;
1969: Introduction of merchant banking;
1971: Established the Jamaica Unit Trust;
1972: Founded Jamaica Mortgage Bank;
1981: Created the National Development Bank;
1981: Initiated the Agricultural Credit Bank;
1982: Conceived Agro 21;
1982: Acquisition of ESSO refinery – renamed JAMPRO;
1982: Commencement of the divestment programme with lease of Government-owned hotels;
1984: Created the Self-Start Fund for small loans to small, start -up investments;
1984: Established the National Investment Bank of Jamaica (NIBJ), later JAMPRO;
1985: Presented comprehensive tax reforms including a flat income tax rate for all at 25 per cent, considerably less than previously;
1985: Solidarity programme for micro-business established;
1986 : Established Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank);
1986: Deregulation of economy commencing with removal of import licensing, and later price controls without any adverse effects;
1986: Privatisation of government financial and industrial institutions — starting with NCB and Caribbean Cement Company. NCB divestment increased share holdings from 3,000 to 30,000;
1988: Initiated digiport – first satellite telecommunications data processing operation, in Montego Bay – now referred to as business process outsourcing (BPO);
1988: One Million Trees Programme commenced;
2018: Promotion of the growth of the Leucaena tree principally for export of wood from trunk and branches, animal feed from leaves, and gasification to create methane gas to produce electricity.
Rural and urban planning and the environment have been prime areas of development, focusing on waterfront developments in the main coastal areas, rural and urban township development programmes, and the development of parks and markets.
1963: Prepared a five-year development plan to chart the first five years of independence;
1966: Redevelopment of Kingston waterfront, starting with four 12-storey high-rise buildings and Bank of Jamaica;
1967: Commenced the slum clearance of ‘Back-o-Wall’ for the development of Tivoli Gardens community — modern, fully planned urban development, Hellshire Hills Development, Portmore Town Centre; Torrington Park Housing Scheme;
1967: Reclamation and development of Ocho Rios waterfront (Turtle Beach), starting with four high-rise apartment building and two hotels;
1968: Founding of Urban Development Corporation;
1969: Comprehensive development plan for infrastructure of many rural towns (later CRTDP) – (Cascade, Elim, Mavis Bank, and others);
1972: 20-Year physical development plan completed to outline next 20 years of national development;
1983: Jamaica Conference Centre – headquarters of the International Seabed Authority and used for national conferences. Built in one year by 24-hour construction;
1983: National Committee on Drug Abuse;
1985: MPM – development of parks, beautification, public cleaning and markets;
1985: Redevelopment of Denham Town;
1988: Reclamation of Montego Bay waterfront;
1988: Negril development (Bloody Bay);
1988: Social Well-being Plan completed and tabled;
1988: Economic Medium —Term Plan – ‘Going for Growth’ — completed and tabled;
Creation of a wide range of social programmes which expanded training in human resources, aided small enterprises and protected the poor and vulnerable.
1963: Construction of National Arena;
1963: Founding of Things Jamaican for craft development;
1965: Established 100 Village Community Development Programme for adults and youths;
1965 : Developed community sports development programmes on a structured, islandwide competition basis;
1965: Initiated the Golden Age Movement;
1965: Founded The National Volunteers;
1970: Established Student Revolving Loan Fund for Higher Education;
1971: National School Feeding Programme;
1972: Establishment of Jamaica Racing Commission and Jockeys’ Training School;
1974: Originated Institute of Mass Communication, later renamed by The University of the West Indies as Caribbean Institute of Media and Communications (CARIMAC);
1982: Introduction of HEART (Human Employment & Resource Training);
1984: Food Stamp Programme for elderly poor and lactating mothers;
1984: ARP (Administrative Reform Programme) for civil service;
1984: LEAP (Learning for Earning Activity Programme) for street children;
1988: PACE (Programme for the Advancement of Early Childhood Education);
1988: Several high-rise residential halls for UWI, UTech and Cultural Training Centre students.
Established in independent Jamaica most of the institutions to build cultural awareness and national identity, as well as develop our arts, crafts and national heritage.
1963: Jamaica Festival;
1964: Promotion of Jamaican popular music (ska);
1964 : Return of Marcus Garvey’s body to Jamaica;
1964: Order of National Heroes – Garvey first hero;
1964: George VI Park renamed National Heroes’ Park;
1965: Museum Development — Arawak, Port Royal;
1967: Initiated Jamaica Journal publication (Institute of Jamaica);
1967: Purchase of Devon House to prevent demolition. Restoration and development as a premier showcase of development of Jamaican crafts and art, a national cultural attraction;
1968: Established National Heritage Week, including National Heroes’ Day;
1971: Design of the Cultural Training Centre — arts, drama, music, painting and sculpture — named on completion as Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts;
1986: Establishment of the audio-visual Creative Production and Training Centre (CPTC);
1988: Planned development of heritage sites (Port Royal, Spanish Town, Seville) — plan completed by UNESCO and UNDP;
1988: Media Divestment Programme to establish several small private radio stations and church television;
2008: Established the Premier League Clubs Association (PLCA) to raise funds for Premier League football clubs.
Institutional, parliamentary, political performance and constitutional reforms
Initiator of some of the most important political, parliamentary and constitutional reforms which affect governance of the country.
1961: Presentation of my momentous ‘Have and Have Not’ speech in Legislative Council, renamed the Senate, pointing out the substantial financial gap between two Jamaicas, the rich and the poor;
1961: Member of the Parliamentary Commission drafting the constitution for independent Jamaica;
1979: Electoral reforms — structure of the Electoral Advisory Committee (EAC), later the Electoral Commission;
1986: Establishment of contractor general, proposed in 1979;
1986: Media Commission created to maintain regulations on fair operations of media;
1992: Constitutional reform — advocate general (renamed public defender);
1993: Constitutional reform — Revised Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms;
1993: Amendment to the Standing Orders of Parliament to allow non-parliamentarians to address Parliament;
1994: Several parliamentary reforms — Parliamentary questions and debate of resolutions subject to specific times for response to strengthen the independence of Parliament over the Executive branch of Government;
Establishment of the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee (PAAC) to provide for parliamentary queries to be subject to response in the current parliamentary year. Without this change parliamentarians would have to wait a further parliamentary year to seek answers from the Executive.
2005: Parliamentary service of an unbroken 45 years, longest ever on record (2 ½ years in the Senate and 43 years in the House of Representatives).
1970: Proposal for UNESCO to establish International Culture Bank, which was accepted and launched as the International Fund for the promotion Culture;
1982: Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) – Partnered with the Caribbean Basin Initiative by the United States to promote regional exports to the US on a one-way duty-free basis for the Caribbean region.
Successful international interventions: against socialism in Jamaica and Grenada, and destabilisation in Haiti and South Africa
1974: Socialism brought to an end in Jamaica and Grenada after strong resistance and in 1980 effective campaigning;
1983: Participated in ending radical socialism in Grenada after intervention by United States forces;
1986: Halted revolution in Haiti by my persuasion of President Jean-Claude Duvalier to leave the country on the eve of a threatened revolution. Acclaimed by Washington and the leadership of Haiti for the creation of a bloodless revolution for change;
1986: Proposed the establishment of a Manpower Bank, accepted by UNDP and established as United Nations International Short Term Advisory Resources (UNISTAR);
1986: Founder and chairman of Caribbean Democrat Union (CDU) to align and consolidate democratic strength in the region;
1986: Proposal to create a CARIBCAN (Canada) trade arrangement;
1987: British proposal to cease sanctions on South Africa presented at the Commonwealth Conference in Canada. It failed because of arguments submitted by me to pressure the financial strength of South Africa instead of trade sanctions. Proposed sanctions and pressure on the South African currency (rand) to force the Government of South Africa to abandon apartheid. This presentation also previously made at the 40th anniversary of the United Nations.
You could add to this his list of awards as well, but I will leave that for others.
Now you tell me, which other Prime Minister or parliamentarian in office or retired can boast of such an impressive list of verifiable achievements.
Yet Mr Seaga is not known for the above and instead has been demonized for decades by the media.
The level of disservice done by this great man by the media houses in Jamaica is shameful to say the least and its reason why many have lost faith in the media and many journalist who have failed to be objective and have become nothing but propagandist.
Word has now emerged that Peter Bunting has rejected an offer to be Peter Phillips campaign manager, which has raised speculations that he is set to challenge Peter Phillips at the next PNP annual conference which is just a few months away.
The question on many people’s lips now, is it the right time ?
Its my considered view that Dr Peter Phillips is well aware that having lost two by -elections and trailing Andrew Holness by double digits, he has all but lost all the political capital he has left.
He has been considered to be an uninspiring leader and one who has failed to get the party together despite having years to prepare for this position . Peter Phillips is close to the end of his political career and having been defeated twice by Portia Simpson Miller in two previous leadership races, I do not believe he will stand the indignity of going out on a losing note.
I am therefore of the belief that when his canvasing has been completed and he recognizing that he is in the losing enclosure, he will resign vs being defeated and leaving the political landscape a loser .
Once Peter steps aside I expect Phillip Paulwell to throw his hat into the ring as he too has indicated in the past that he has ambitions to be party leader.
Is the time right for the leadership challenge and can the party rebuild itself for the upcoming elections, which I strongly believe will be the middle on next year.
I must admit that when I was growing up in the 1970’s and early 1980’s my early impression of Edward Seaga was a man who was not only very controversial but a man who was prone to act in a manner that resulted in or supported violent conduct.
I viewed him as a man that was crazy about power and would do anything to get and retain. That was the information I gleaned from the media as well as both my parents who were strong supporters of Michael Manley.
As I became older and more exposed, I began to realize that I was only been given 30% of the story on the man and the greater legacy I had to discover on my own.
The Jamaica Stock Exchange has a total valuation today of approx $1.93 trillion dollars. If you work for a listed company or have made and continue to make money in the equities market, give thanks to Eddie Seaga
If you were trained at Heart/NTA , you would like to express gratitude to Eddie as he was the man behind this wonderful institution which today has trained thousands of people, many of who the society had given upon because they did not have enough “subjects”
The birth of the private sector can be considered another legacy of the man.
The Urban Development Corporation or UDC is yet another legacy of the giant.
Others include
Exim Bank
Jamaica Mortgage Bank
JCDC
The Jamaica constitution
The list could go on and on.
Today I want to say, well done Edward Phillip George Seaga , your legacy will forever live on.
I am mildly amused when I hear people who I know personally are corrupt bawling about the pervasive corruption in the country and wonder to myself, do they include themselves .
Its my considered view that people consider corruption to be the acts of others and they themselves are excluded. If we expand further on that, it therefore means most people would not see them-self to be corrupt at all and as such would do very little to address matters of corruption.
I will give an example of a simple act that no one considers to be corrupt. I am standing in the bank line for 45 mins and here come Mr Man, he smiles goes to the teller and hands him/her a pouch envelope and leaves. I am now in the line for an hour and Mr Man walks back in, goes to the window collects back his pouch and leaves, job done and did not have to wait in the line like me.
Did Mr Man act corruptly in being able to get service without having to stand in the line like I did waiting on my turn, you decide.
The society preaches ” you need a God Father” you need people who can “pull strings for you” or you need ” contacts” and these “contacts” should be able to pull you out of a sticky situation.
Why do we need people who can “pull strings” for us, BTW what does “pulling strings” mean. Does it mean you are able to get through faster than the average man or have access to things you really aren’t suppose to.
The amazing thing is we pride ourselves about our circle of “string pullers” those people who we can call and get things done without having to move a muscle.
Aren’t we planting the seeds of corruption by virtue of this practice which is highly encouraged.
Yesterday the Integrity Commission which has been under
sustained attack for daring to tell the public about aspect of the Contractor
General’s report into the Rooms on the Beach sale, hosted a press conference.
Of interest only a single media house, that is NNN choose to
carry the broadcast live, so members of the public could hear for themselves vs
getting “interpretation” and “cheery picking” from so called public
commentators and journalist .
The press conference was welcomed by those who had an interest
in the truth but would have left many “purveyors of the truth” exposed and were
now seen to have been swimming naked as the “tide” receded.
Many “independent” public commentators were openly questioning
the “integrity” and “independence” of member of the integrity commission and
asking publicly why they choose to “insert” themselves into the “Rooms on the Beach”
sale.
Yesterday we learned that these folks of impeccable character
found that some of the conclusions reached by Dirk Harission were ”
inflammatory and could not have been supported by the information presented in
the same report. In fact, they referred to a section of the OCG Report which concluded
that the Daryl Vaz negotiated the sale, while in the same report it said the
UDC Chairman had negotiated the sale.
Dirk Harrison would like for us to believe that his integrity is
beyond question but seemed willing to not offer that same respect to others, by
suggesting something that contracted his own findings, how odd.
The Integrity Commission in my mind has laid to rest that matter
and said nothing different from what they had written before, but I guess now
the very people who refused to “buy” it because it did no suit their narrative,
now have no further talking point.
Over the last two weeks many public commentators and members of
the opposition blasted the government for failure to confirm Dirk Harrison in
the role in which he was acting.
Now we are made aware that it was Dirk himself who said via and
email that he ” would not consider any post on the integrity commission” until
the matter of his full pension was resolved.
Let me explain the above.
Under the OCG act, the Contractor General is appointed for a 7
year term and once he serves out that entire term he/she is entitled to a FULL
PENSION. The full term for Dirk comes to an end sometime next year and he was
unsure how this new full-time post would impact that situation and as such
never wanted a full appointment until that matter was settled.
The people who rushed to the media and were on all angles
issuing demands either did not know this or knew but decided to be deceitful
and not tell the country what the know, and in so doing appeared to want to
suggest the GOJ had an issue with Dirk and did not want to appoint him to the
role.
The
Integrity Commission also issued an appeal for the gag order placed on them to
be removed so they could comment on investigation. I am stunned that the
PNP/JLP and members of the joint select committee which reviewed this piece of
legislation could have inserted this clause then turn around and demand
transparency from the said commission, I am truly flabbergasted.
This has
once again raised the issue of the bipartisan approach which is the most
suggested approach to getting things done. This is the second time in a month
we have seen where that has failed to deliver what the country wants. (Recall
the inclusion of the mandatory feature in the NIDS LEGISLATION as suggested by
the PNP and agreed by the JLP)
I am
issuing a call on all those who “blasted” the government and the
Integrity Commission, to unreservedly apologize for the rushing to judgment
without the facts and commit to behave differently in the future.
While I probably could forgive those commentators for not being
in the know, I am not sure what to make of Mark Golding and other members of
the opposition who issued similar call, did they not know or where they are
being deceitful as usual, we may never know.
One
commentator was heard saying ” the Integrity Commission press conference
did much to improve the credibility of its members, not realizing that what it
really did was to expose those who were swimming naked until the tide receded
Former Contractor General Dirk Harrison has completed his report and has arrived at some conclusions which are at best “reaching” beyond the scope of the investigation and the evidence presented in his report.
In his conclusion Dirk reported that ” the negotiations between the buyer and UDC was not done freely and that investment Minister Daryl was alleged to have interfered with the negotiations and even the final sale price”
However in reading the report Dirk wrote among other things, excerpt of a letter from the board( as seen below)
So the board wrote that a figure was approved and sent for further approval after which a “no objective” to the sale was reported back.
Dirk appeared to have premised his conclusion based on statement from Vaz which said inter alia ” Please free to make contact with me if there are any problems with the negotiations”.
I am not sure where in the world someone with responsibility for anything cannot say to the people who report to him “ let me know if you run into issues so I can assist” Isn’t that part of being responsible. To therefore go from here to saying ” meddling” is more than a stretch, its actually ridiculous.
The Integrity commission which is made of people with impeccable character , found issues with the report , which Dirk refused to address, which brings into question his motives.
I cannot ignore the concerns from these people who unanimously agreed that ” If the report is read by an objective person, there would be serious concerns about the conclusions that have been arrived at”
I would posit that the report be struck down in its entirety as not only has it sought to impute the character of the minister it also has been stretched by persons who are less than objective to suggest that the deal between Puerto Caribe Properties Limited and UDC was not above board and improper .
We now have a $67b project hanging by the thread by this rather careless report and the potential loss of over 7000 jobs between construction and operations if the new property owner decides to pull out rather than have his name dragged through the mud, by people who have no desire to see Jamaicans move from poverty to prosperity and is willing to put anything in the way of the country moving forward.
Anyone who has either bought or sold an asset knows there is a difference between valuation(value) and market or final price. Most would also know that negotiated price especially for investment purpose goes beyond the final asset sale price but the opportunity cost of the project.
The following would have been factors to be considered
Revenue flow from income tax, gct etc
The employment opportunities for jobs between construction and full operations
Benefits that would accrue to local business in the area including farmers and ordinary folks
Spin off for other business such as taxi, tour operators etc.
The shortsightedness by many crying foul once again shows the level of dishonesty by those who say they are championing the cause of the people of Jamaica and Lambert Brown comes to mind.
On Friday Lambert Brown described the sale as a travesty and an insult to the people of Jamaica.
Lambert Brown in a 2007 article sought to paint PJ Patterson as a visionary for sale of what was termed ” The Rollins Land Sale scandal” by the people of Jamaica . He wrote
According to Brown, the sale should not have been seen as simply the sale of land, but one ought to have been objective and look into the future the see the spin off from the project, which he described as being phenomenal ie the sale created major development and jobs.
Note the similarities between the two sales in terms of the projected outcomes one which was realized years later and the other to come years from now. How does Lambert Brown see the two being any different, I would love to hear from he
He continued
He later spoke about the Sandals Whitehouse project and said
Note this part . ” Charges of scandals are becoming like bounced cheques, looking good on first sight but really worthless when presented and scrutinized against the account of development and lasting jobs.
I wonder why Lambert and the PNP has changed tune, or its really just about the politics.
Warren's Blog 