Dear Editor,

I hold no brief for permanent secretaries, and they are well capable of defending themselves, but I think Michael Lee-Chin and Senator Aubyn Hill are missing the point when they are directing their frustration at the senior leadership of the public sector.

Furthermore, there appears to be an ignorance of the operations of public administration, not just by members of the Economic Growth Council but also in the wider private sector.

Have they sought to develop and share understanding among themselves of what is expected and how they can work together for this better Jamaica that we are all dreaming of?

What has happened to the “five in four” growth target? I recall Michael Lee-Chin, on numerous occasions, sticking out his neck that it will be achieved, and now this appears to be an attempt to blame permanent secretaries for their failure or poor judgement. We must call it what it is.

Now, as part of Prime Minister Holness’s inner circle, both gentlemen should raise the issue of accountability with him. Let him say why we have not seen the promised job descriptions for Members of Parliament and performance measures for ministers of government. What has happened to that grand idea?

As we get ready for another general election, these are the things we must get answers to. It cannot be that we expect only certain people to be held accountable; every one must be held accountable.

I must say that there is a larger discussion to be had about the kind of civil service that we want in Jamaica. It has been said by mainly Jamaica Labour Party actionaries that the civil service is made up of People’s National Party people, and they are sabotaging the Government’s policies and plans.

Now, in parts of the world, like France and Germany, the senior leadership of the civil service is political and they know that, and so when there is a change of Government it is expected that the senior leadership will go. Is that what we want in Jamaica? We need to decide.

Annie Spencer

imasweetie_pie@yahoo.com