Before Jamaica implodes from the destructive practice of tribal politics which has thwarted our progress over the decades, I would hope that the Governor General would have and use his special powers (by) some emergency decree, to abolish or suspend our two- party system for a given period so the country could be rebuilt from ground up by a team with dedicated and honest people like you, among a council of patriots who would like to see Jamaica regain some of its past footings as we move towards the next half-century. — Mac The-Knife

WE suspect that the sentiments expressed in the comment above by a Jamaica Observer online reader — reacting to Contractor General Greg Christie’s latest salvo against tribal politics — is widely shared in Jamaican society. But if only it were that easy! The nature of countries is such that one doesn’t get to start all over from scratch.

Mr Christie is, of course, very correct in urging Jamaicans to resist tribal politics which he describes as “another pervasive cultural norm that has taken root in our beloved country”.

Our past disagreements with the contractor general, usually over his modus operandi and rambunctiousness, do not prevent us from acknowledging his own efforts to be non-partisan in his approach to the difficult job he has undertaken on behalf of our nation.

We note and celebrate his consistency in a speech Monday evening to the Rotary Club of St Andrew North, in which he spoke a veritable truth: “It is a cultural norm, which is called ‘tribal politics’ and which seems to require that everyone and everything be first assessed through a perceived green or orange political prism, and then be treated accordingly, whether via facilitation or via association.”

Every Jamaican who shares this view with Mr Christie must join the crusade against this dastardly feature of national life and behaviour which feeds anger and violence and hopelessness.

And yet we admit how difficult it is, and will be, to root out tribalism or its siblings as listed by Mr Christie: corruption in government contracting, organised crime and political campaign financing, “all of which seem to have been happily working together, in perfect harmony, for some time”.

Tribalism is so pervasive that it lives comfortably in the church, in the workplace, in the professions, in academia, even in charity organisations. Which is why the notion of team work is nothing more than an ideal that we yearn for but can never seem to achieve, no matter how desperately we need to.

Mr Christie argues, with our support, that political tribalism is one of single largest impediments to the country attaining sustained economic growth and social development.

We commend his charge to the Rotarians to all Jamaicans who love this country: “You must act, not only by encouraging your political leaders and the nation’s business and media interests into urgent and decisive action in the interest of Jamaica, but you, your family members, your colleagues and your business associates must also act similarly in the lives that you lead and in the way that you conduct your affairs.”