Dear Editor,

I have listened to the cries about teachers and other Jamaicans migrating to greener pastures and the many critics citing low pay, crime, and violence as the main reasons. But, in my experience, that’s not so.

For the most part I am not directly affected by violence as most crimes in Jamaica are gang on gang, intra- and inter-gang violence. Do I fear being affected? Yes. In fact, the fear of crime is far greater than the crime rate itself.

Salaries, from the minimum wage to that which is earned by high-level managers, when compared to many other countries, especially developed countries, are low. And, while Jamaica is said to be one of the cheapest countries in which to live, the ability of residents to pay for goods and services is among the lowest in the region.

The things that bring me frustration more than anything else and gives me thoughts of migrating are the lack of simple, expected courtesies and services from both the private and public sectors.

It is like when you buy several suites of clothes for your child, each piece labelled with his size, but when you get home the shirts fit but the pants don’t, and when you try to return it they don’t want to take it back and can provide no replacement.

It is things like purchasing an item at one branch of a store for $1,200 and going to another store 24 hours after to purchase the same item, but it now costs $2,400 — a difference of 100 per cent. These are the things which drive me to migrate.

It is my fellow Jamaican who insists that I can’t use the restroom in his store, shop, or gas station if I am not purchasing something. It is the man or woman who insists on breaking the law and causing mayhem on the road, who, when spoken to, tells you, “You chat too much,” or “You could give mi a bly?” These are the Jamaicans who, through their selfish acts and desires, continue to erode the moral fibre of our nation.

It is also the poor and non-existent service of our utility providers. About 2:30 pm on Sunday, September 11, 2022 there was an electricity outage in my community, and after reporting it via WhatsApp and making several calls, most of which failed, no public announcement or direct message about the outage, or asurance of its return, was conveyed to the affected customers.

At sometime after 10:00 pm the agent simply said the report is not yet assigned to a team and she can’t say when it will be, who they will be, or when power will be restored. It was not until sometime after 10:00 am on Monday, September 12, 2022 that power was restored. Frustrating!

It is a fact that I live in what would be termed a suburban community, but to get to my house I travel on roads no better than riverbeds. It is a fact that, while my house is connected to the National Water Commission system, I am forced to purchase water from $10,000 to $20,000 every month. This, while thousands don’t pay for water and many waste the vital commodity.

These are the little but fundamental things that frustrate me and make me want to migrate — the simple things. These are things that can be fixed if there is the will to do so. These are the things!

The people of Jamaica are the ones who fuel my desire to migrate, not the politicians. We can fix this and we must!

Damion Manderson