Change Without Chaos

In order to grasp the magnitude of Jamaica’ economic predicament, all the indices have to be taken together. Contemplate this: When the entire globe is surveyed, this tiny island state of less than three million people has the fourth highest concentration of debt at over $2 trillion, at the highest interest rate, with one of the highest income disparity at Gini index of over sixty percent, with one of the highest poverty rate, one of the highest corruption perception index, one of the highest rate of unemployment, consistently one of the highest murder rate, and not surprisingly; at a net negative growth rate for the last seven years. In light of these very unflattering development indices, this paper begins with the redundant presumption that something is fundamentally flawed with Jamaica’s socio-economic configuration. The current macro-economic picture is possibly worse now than in 1974 and Michael Manley’s conclusion then is just as applicable today: Jamaica’s conditions require much more than mere tinkering and incremental reconstruction. Jamaica is urgently in need of radical corrective measures to remedy its chronic social and economic state of affairs in order to fend off the growing discontent and the threatening social upheaval. It is law which regulates a society and an economy. The constitution represents the primary legal foundation upon which a society organizes itself. It takes no stretch of the imagination to conclude therefore, that the constitution is the most logical starting place for a new national framework for governance in the interest of the genuine pursuit of social and economic advancement for all Jamaicans and not just the select few. It is not right for leaders to cause their people to suffer needlessly, and for so long. Heroes and celebrated leaders are those who take up the causes of the oppressed and no society can advance without sacrificial and enlightened leadership. All Jamaica’s leaders, in the public and private sector; in academia, trade unions, the professional associations, civic groups, the media and the church must stop playing with phrases, pandering to the privileged and prevaricating the pain of the people. It is within their power to band together to demand the transformation which will overhaul the governance structure, halt the rampant exploitation of the broader mass of the people and grow the economy. They must step up to the plate and claim justice for their people. Many persons are only too willing to point fingers, find fault and lay blame at the feet of the politicians. However, Jamaica could not have arrived at its present predicament if all its leaders had been playing their roles effectively. Political leaders cannot keep a democratic country where it does not collectively desire to be. The days of the messianic, all powerful boss-leader have passed and the present prime minister cannot mother the entire nation to health by herself. She has recognized this and issued an impassioned invitation, at her inauguration in January 2012, for “all hands on deck.” Real change has always resulted from genuine, progressive, broad-based people movements and every patriotic Jamaican everywhere with a voice must speak up and speak out and join the fight for economic justice and the reconstruction of their nation. Jamaicans can collectively choose to lumber along as we have for the last forty years at average growth of less than one percent, or even worse at the net negative growth for the last seven years. The people can choose to accept and applaud two percent growth as some kind of monumental achievement and then cross their fingers and pray that there will be no internal disruption, natural disasters or external economic shocks. Or they can come together now, hold their leaders to account to correct the economic inequalities that will result in the transformation that could quite conceivably propel the economy to register six or eight percent growth per annum and usher in a prosperous future. Invariably, there will be those among the economic elites and within the elected and appointed aristocracy who will try to frustrate transformation efforts because of their fear of a loss of power and prestige, but John F. Kennedy has warned that “those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.” In the end, however, the only sustainable development is equitable development and Prime Minister Simpson Miller is absolutely correct, growth is not possible without poverty reduction. Jamaica will never realize its economic potential until it restructures its economic and governance dynamics. Recovery is not likely to materialize without reformation. Jamaica can recover and prosper. There is still time; but not much. "Now is the time, this is the hour…”