Dear Editor,

Both PNP and JLP governments have led our country along a path of tribal division once labelled by an honourable leader as a society of warring tribes fighting over scarce benefits.

The social chaos and economic malaise facing us today were spawned by both JLP and PNP machinations. Of course, both PNP and JLP sycophants, when confronted with this fact immediately point blaming fingers at each other. But facts don’t lie. Both parties should be held accountable for the ugly state of our country.

Since Independence, the average growth rate has hovered around one per cent, a miserable performance by governments from both the PNP and JLP. That is a bad enough record, but then along came the advent of Garrison politics. Both parties resorted to the Garrison system to cement perpetual power, often with the aid of gunmen and militias

Consequently, large areas of urban Jamaica became dependent on party largesse for survival, thus relinquishing civic freedom for the rule of dons. This has ensured a life threatened by poverty, depravity, second-class citizenship, and hopelessness. Large swaths of our population fell from our economic and social mainstream.

After 50-plus years of Independence, we are still victims of this cancer. No party or government can escape condemnation for our pitiful economic condition, our overwhelming crime, and persistent levels of corruption.

“None but ourselves can free our minds” Bob Marley once wrote.

R Oscar Lofters

Kingston 8

lofters1@aol.com