Dear Editor,

The present impasse in wage negotiations between the Government and public sector workers brings into sharp focus the breakdown of patriotism in us as a people and our inability to put country above self.

It was the late US President John Kennedy who said: “Ask not what your county can do for you but what you can do for your country…” That speech aroused the true American spirit and laid the platform on which modern America is built.

We, as a people, find it rather difficult to put our shoulders to the wheel, to struggle for a better tomorrow, and to sacrifice for a better quality of life for the future generation.

I was so alarmed when I woke up to realise that the security forces who have sworn to serve and protect the people have abandoned the true spirit of negotiation and effectively left the people at the mercy of brutal criminals.

Teachers, who can be classified as the primary nation-builders, have also abdicated their responsibilities by staging sit-ins at a most crucial time when students are preparing for internal and external exams. How can a group of workers be so insensitive, irresponsible and selfish in the face of the struggles the country is facing and a government which, in my opinion, is driving a policy to rid the country of the burden of debt and place it on a trajectory of growth? The economic numbers, as presented by the Bank of Jamaica and supported by the umbrella private sector groups, have given us a ray of hope that there is a bright light ahead.

The actions taken by these two groups is tantamount to “raping the goose that lays the golden egg”. Where do we go from here as a nation?

Government cannot be absolved, in some cases, of some of the blame that has led us down this road. The Opposition, up to this point of writing, must be commended for not jumping on this dastardly action and siding with the workers for political expediency.

All of us who have the survival of our country at heart should ensure that the future generation can enjoy a good quality of life. Put away selfish thoughts and actions and put Jamaica, land we love, above self.

Fernandez ‘Bingy’ Smith

fgeorgesmith@yahoo.com