THE political 'silly season' is upon us again and already we are seeing incidents of poor judgement and ill-timed comments on the part of individuals as they try to obtain political mileage for their party.

Let us be clear. We don't expect election campaigns to be a Sunday afternoon stroll in the park, devoid of colour and satire. However, what we cannot sanction is personal abuse, violence, indecency and intolerance for opposing views.

For too long our politics has been mired in this culture of tribalism and narrow-mindedness that, we have no doubt, has contributed significantly to an absence of examination of issues when voters enter polling booths.

The Jamaican brand has been gaining international traction, and our prowess on the world's athletic tracks has to be matched by growing political sophistication, if the world is to respect us not just for brawn but for our brain as well. We expect, therefore, that our political parties — now that they are again on the hustings — will present to the country ideas on how they intend to deal effectively with the many difficult issues facing us.

The economy, investment that will result in job creation, education, health care, crime, and the maintenance of infrastructure and services come readily to mind.

These are problems that successive governments have long struggled to overcome. True, there have been positive advances in some of these areas. However, there is still a lot more that needs to be done in order that many more Jamaicans can enjoy a better life.

We accept that most of what needs to be done requires money. And in this economic climate, cash is scarce. However, we raised in this space last week the issue of waste in the public sector -- waste that is highlighted at almost every sitting of the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament and in the Auditor General's report annually. How have we forgotten about the Douglas Orane Committee on reducing waste so soon?

We are convinced that the monies being wasted in the public sector can be put to good use in areas that, as we said, would redound to the benefit of ordinary Jamaicans. Of course, the state would need to put in place proper and effective monitoring mechanisms in order to prevent a transfer of the waste.

Those are among the issues that we expect will be raised on political platforms during the campaign, with ideas and solutions put forward in detail, rather than in the abstract terms of Opposition Leader Portia Simpson Miller's Jamaica Emergency Employment Programme (JEEP) which she announced at the People's National Party annual conference on September 18.

The fact is that three weeks after making this announcement, Mrs Simpson Miller has not been able to give the country details of this programme. Her spokesmen have, at best, waffled in their attempts to explain it and her pronouncement that she is not yet ready to divulge more in order to prevent it being copied by her political opponents suggests that the JEEP remains a shell that needs an engine.

That is simply unacceptable, and the Government should take heed and be aware of the fact that it, too, cannot come to the people with nice-sounding words and expect not to be challenged.

In all of this, the electorate has a vital role, as people should make it clear to the politicians that their votes cannot be bought, neither will they accept gimmickry in place of substance.

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