FIFTY-four years ago, Jamaicans were declared free to look after themselves. We muddle along with the undertaking in organised disorder, each year celebrating Independence while the people are still not free of dependency and persistent poverty.

Left to our own devices even nature is at risk of degradation for economic benefit, whether it be mining in the Cockpit Country of Trelawny, or the removal of sand at Negril, or risk losing our earthly paradise when new highways are disturbing the beauty of the valleys and the splendour of the hills — bypassing vibrant villages where people live and make their living.

We tolerate the degradation and loss of livelihood in the name of economic expediency. Bog Walk and Linstead will have to take care of themselves, but I lament the outcome for Ewarton and historic Moneague — the sugar pine vendors on the way to Moneague are almost entirely out of business, Rose’s bar closed, there is no faith in the future for jerk at Faith’s Pen or for Lyming at Walkerswood. Government’s constitutional obligation to protect the environment that is vital for our survival should not be reneged on for the benefit of a few at a loss to the many.

Now is the right time to consider the last time the economy was stable and crime under control, for the people to have hope for better going forward.

The country is brought to this point of unrelenting depravation and told, “The Jamaican economy remains on course to turn the corner.” — Like a signpost pointing the direction but never itself going there. The Administration had 11 more months to take the country around the corner and finish the course for the promised economic prosperity, even take the country partway after great sacrifice to get where we are. Since, as we are told, the Government was not pushed from Gordon House, it must have jumped, at a touch — and we know why people jump from transport approaching a corner. Having jumped, the outgoing Government is asking for five more years to turn the corner, but, as my mother would say, “Finish what you have on your plate before you ask for more or leave the table!”

That mandatory injunction would have been avoided if there were a fixed day for elections. During the campaign for votes the people wish to hear what plan is around the corner for their benefit.

We note where the outgoing Administration signalled an intention to increase its numbers after the election; but wouldn’t it be better to go in the opposite direction and reduce the size of Government, starting with itself. We need to look at the structure for governance to see if we are best served by the present system, with auxiliary agencies for government that cost what the people cannot afford without producing desired results. Increasing the size of Government will not achieve economic success under the existing rules as the whole bunch seems unconnected to the people. The people need to be personally connected to the Government they elect, not living in a state of neo-colonialism.

On May 27, 1992 I wrote to the then prime minister on the occasion of the establishment of the Constitution Reform Commission stating, among other things, the following:

“I understood from your speech that the commission has two tasks to perform: one, recommending necessary and urgent amendments to the existing constitution; and two, drafting a new constitution appropriate for Jamaica, its people, their aspirations and convictions.”

R B Manderson-Jones, a lawyer, in his assessment of the commission’s report, entitled ‘A failure of nationhood’ wrote: “The report of the Constitutional Commission of Jamaica . . . has failed in every imaginable way to capture the spirit of the people or to understand and analyse the critical issues of the day and the need for reform…It must effectively address experiences and reflect the aspirations of the people… and must engender a climate which promotes greater participation of the democratic process…The reformed constitution must seek to capture popular will, symbolise national values and aspirations, and reflect the soul and spirit of the people.”

Today, not much has changed, except for the Charter of Rights that was mentioned in an earlier article. We are still governed by the same rules carried over from colonial times for the benefit of the master to the detriment of people. Not because Britain, with a population of 59 million, has local governments to partake in running the country; Jamaica, with a population under three million, must also have 14 parish councils, at great expense, to do what one ministry of central government should do. The plan to entrench local government in the Constitution, without the approval of the people, will not produce one new job or reduce the price of bread by one cent, or fix one road, or provide a regular water supply for the people. This is where the voice of young people should be heard, instead of sulking and staying away from the process expecting better to come like manna from heaven.

Not because Sweden invented the ombudsman and Britain converted this to commissions of Parliament we must have them in Jamaica where one ministry for home affairs — as we had before — should suffice. Not because Britain has executive agencies and statutory corporations we must repeat the practice in government with myriad consultants for Government to work, when not more than 12 ministers, stripped of constituency responsibilities, can work. Let the MPs give direct service to the people and not to Government; they must live in the parish where their constituency is, traversing the same bad roads, drinking the same water when it is available, and exposed to the same health hazards from unclear gullies and the dangers from crime by a lack of security.

What is needed is a total overhaul of the constitutional arrangement to disallow unskilled management of the nation’s affairs. These are challenges young people must face, fix the system if you are dissatisfied with what is there. Support the political party that, in your judgement, will best suit these purposes.

Frank Phipps is a Queen’s Counsel in Jamaica who continues to service the field of law. Send comments to the Observer or to frank.phipps@yahoo.com