Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and Opposition Leader Andrew Holness gave an outstanding speech in our nation’s Parliament last Wednesday. All Jamaicans, irrespective of political stripe or inclination should be proud of his bold, progressive and frank counsel to visiting UK Prime Minister David Cameron. Holness’s weighty assertion and compelling aide-mémoire ensured that no matter how much Prime Minister Cameron tried to dance around the issue of the United Kingdom’s outstanding obligations to its former colonies, the matter of reparation remains an open item deserving serious deliberations and active attention. Given the circumstances of Cameron’s visit to Jamaica, Holness’s diplomatic-feistiness was not only appropriate, it was also earnest and genuinely brilliant.

Yet, the Opposition Leader took no pause, as he continued in remarkable fashion to underscore that Jamaica’s advancement lies not in the building of prisons, but in the expansion of the kingdom of the mind. How profound! Holness unapologetically advised Cameron, and the entire joint sitting of the Houses of Parliament, that “The key lesson here is [to] educate our people, particularly in skills [because it] is the best way to spur human development to support a growth agenda and to keep the poor and dispossessed out of prison…” Holness then upped the ante and hit a solid ‘six’ when he pointed out to Cameron that, “…building schools contribute much more to the growth agenda than building prisons…” We should proudly cheer, Hear, hear, Andrew! In that one remark to a so-called First-World leader, Andrew, whether wittingly or unwittingly, erased a substantial portion of the long drought of intellectual barrenness that has overshadowed much of our parliamentary discussions of late.

However, even as we issue encomia to Andrew for being bold, we should also prepare ourselves to ask the Opposition leader a few simple questions. Whose obligation is it to build schools in Jamaica? Is it the UK’s or Jamaica’s responsibility? Do we have the financial resources to build a modern prison to replace centuries-old prison facilities that do everything else, except aid rehabilitation? Besides the UK, which other country or multilateral agency is willing to finance the building a new prison? If we were to reject the £30 million (which comprise of £25 million in upfront capital and £5.5 million in recurrent funding, stretched over 4 years) in dedicated grants, would the problems of dilapidated and overcrowded prison facilities not continue? Are we not conflating the issues of reparative justice with another brazen form of violation of the human rights of incarcerated men and women — however undeserving we may feel they are of a decent prison environment?

Andrew’s recent parliamentary speech, though remarkable, was mild in significance and comparison to one given by JLP Chairman Senator Robert Montague to the JLP’s Central Executive last Sunday. According to impeccable sources within the JLP, and confirmation from subsequent media reports, the son of St Mary and past student of my alma mater (St Mary High) appealed to the executive membership of the JLP to convene a “national summit” to discuss and settle on a way forward for Jamaica. Though not novel in concept or design, Montague’s expressions are deeply rooted in the simple, but principled “Faith and Courage” motto of St Mary High School. His clarion call to his political colleagues signifies an encouraging show of political maturity. It also represents a readiness to depart from an antiquated political culture in which politicians, on both sides, behave like “masters of all they survey”, while glibly touting unrealistic and unbankable schemes, especially in regards to economic matters such as growth and development, but all in the quest to attain State power.

According to press reports, Montague told JLP bigwigs, “As we move towards a general election, let’s be mindful that the harsh realities of our economic situation will not go away by wishful thinking. As we reviewed the latest International Monetary Fund (IMF) country report, we, as a responsible Opposition, want to discuss some specific ideas and solutions with the Government, the workers’ representatives, civil society, the private sector, and academia. Let us settle some issues and national priorities, not shouting from political platform, but sitting facing each other in the interest of the country. We have sacrificed too much, come too far, under this IMF programme, to lose the GAINS [my emphasis] in an election campaign. We can do it…”

Robert Montague deserves a medal. He deserves accolades for his bravery in support of the enterprise we call Jamaica. Bobby’s sentiments and advice to his party to strive for national consensus should be the litmus test that all current and future political leaders must pass. His words are significant enough to cause a mighty reawakening of what it truly means to be Jamaican. Without hyperbole, the quality of his thoughts are surpassed only by the relevance and modernity of his arguments and his desire to see our country prosper and its people achieve their rightful place. Bravo, bravo, Robert Montague!

We all know that Jamaica subscribes to the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. As such, the Opposition (minority) party is under no obligation to cooperate with the governing party and is free either to propose or oppose depending on what it views as central to its political interest and success. Therefore, Montague’s suggestion, were it to be accepted by the JLP, could change the course of our political experiment in ways unimaginable. It could also achieve a new spirit of cooperation and trust, the foundation on which prosperous societies rest. There is something even more profound, about Montague’s vision and challenge that we cannot, or should not, overlook. His remarks speak to an honest and willing acknowledgement that, in spite of the naysayers and prophets of doom from his own party, there have been “economic gains” over these past three years under the IMF agreement, gains we cannot squander in the name of politics, power and glory.

If only Montague’s plea could filter through and down to the “rank and file”, it would serve as a balm in a society that is bereft of much of its national pride, fountain of unity, and patriotism. It is incumbent on the leadership of the governing People’s National Party (PNP) to seize this moment. It should do so by extending a hand of friendship to the JLP and invite them to assist the Government in finding common ground and programmes around which to mobilise an entire people. As Bobby Montague correctly asserted to the JLP’s executive committee, “Let’s commit to finding a common ground; let’s take some things [off] the political platform; let’s, as responsible leaders, behind closed doors, in the interest of national good, set and agree on national goals and priorities for the good of the nation…” By adopting and adapting to the Montague doctrine on national dialogue, consultation and unity, Jamaica would be inching closer to achieving a better society and thereby become the place of choice to live, work and raise families.

There is too much furore over UK Prime Minister David Cameron’s recent visit to Jamaica. We must place the visit in its proper context and classify it exactly for what it was; otherwise, the unmatched hopes and expectations of many people could become excessively burdensome for them to bear. It is quite unfortunate that many people genuinely believed that the prime minister’s trip would have ended with some major announcements about reparation settlement or an apology for slavery. Similar to what obtained during President Obama’s visit, with respect to the exoneration of Marcus Garvey and expungement of his criminal records for “US mail fraud”, we should not expect these leaders to go beyond the boundaries of their intentions. In other words, do not expect too much from them or else disappointment will set in faster than rigor mortis.

To begin with, the reality that United Kingdom is fast becoming less influential and more irrelevant in the Caribbean region has suddenly dawned on 10 Downing Street. The UK cannot stand the fact that Venezuela and China are fast replacing both England and (our rich uncle up north) the United States of America as vital economic and development partners. Cameron said as much in our Parliament last Tuesday during his strategic stopover visit. Cameron mentioned the £360-million grant-funding proposal at every opportunity as “our down payment on the new relationship” because, according to him, “As friends, we have shared so much, but must look to the future.” It was his duty to sell the £360-million infrastructure grant programme, alongside the US$9-billion environment fund, as the best things since slice bread. Cameron succeeded in selling it, but the market remains sceptical about access, having heard no details on apportionment, preconditionalities, and so on. Ironically, and for comparative analysis, Cameron’s emphasis on the £360 million (J$64 billion) to be divided among many Caribbean countries is as interesting as it is small. It pales in comparison to the $164 billion Jamaica just saved under the recent PetroCaribe debt buyback deal with Venezuela.

It was not lost on me that the Prime Minister Cameron’s visit, like that of President Obama, was a purely strategic and pre-emptive move by the UK to reassert its presence — certainly not its dominance — in the Caribbean Basin because the region represents great potential for the UK to expand exports to the current £1-trillion trade market. The move is geopolitical because both the UK and the US are hell-bent on limiting China’s presence in the region to ultimately thwart its trajectory to overtake the US as the biggest economy and, possibly, the most powerful military force in the world. As I listened to Prime Minister Cameron address our Parliament, it struck me as being quite odd for him to look us in the eye and tell us how much “we have emerged from slavery” but, without having any appreciation, let alone understanding, of the lingering and deleterious effect slavery continues to have on peoples of the Caribbean.

Prime Minister Cameron chose his words very carefully; he spoke authoritatively about Britain’s role in ending the slave trade. However, he purposely avoided the issues of slavery, and offered no apologies for slavery. He completely ignored the descendants of slaves, whose forbears toiled, bled, and died to build, educate, empower and enriched his own country. Prior to arriving in Jamaica, he may well have calculated that an apology for slavery would provide solid premise for Caricom to advance the reparation claims against the UK and he would have none of it. While I support Caricom’s position on reparation, I see it as a transitional justice mechanism. As such, methinks it has to be incremental, but in a manner that brings noticeable satisfaction to victims, or descendants of victims, whose human, social and economic rights were seriously abridged, denied or abused. Undeniably, therefore, the UK continues to owe the peoples of the Caribbean substantially more than the “£360-million down payment on a new relationship”.

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