Even as we mark Jamaica’s 61st birthday as an independent nation in song and dance, beyond the “jump and prance” is the harsh reality that the country’s revered democratic way of life is being threatened by what appears to be a precipitated descent into crass indiscipline, blood thirstiness, reckless behaviour, disrespect, and a general sense of hopelessness.

What is equally worrying is that, even as the Andrew Holness-led Administration desperately tries to instil law and order in an increasingly anarchic society, the big elephant in the room is corruption as well as what many concerned citizens discern as a creeping tendency towards dictatorial rule fuelled by arrogance and fragile egos.

It is in this context that we need to revisit the whole business of Independence. Has it really worked for us? Or have we taken it for granted? In real terms, it may well be argued that the 61 years of Independence can be best described as “how politics underdeveloped Jamaica”. This may sound cynical, and perhaps self-demeaning, coming from a former elected representative, but I am all for calling a spade a spade.

It is no secret that rampant corruption, social inequities, a lack of big ideas, and an unwillingness to make unpopular decisions that in the long run would have benefited the country tremendously have led to a lopsided socio-economic environment with the resulting prevalence of crime and violence, a deleterious brain drain, as well as widespread apathy.

Many well-thinking and concerned Jamaicans, in a last-ditch effort to save this country from perpetual social degradation, have been suggesting that there should be a coalition Government or some form of national consensus. This is in line with the proposed establishment of a social contract. The Government, private sector, trade unions, and civil society have, for the most part, paid lip service to a social partnership agreement which would help to create meaningful, ongoing national dialogue and ultimately consensus on issues relating to economic advancement of our people and uplifting social development. Unfortunately, both the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and People’s National Party (PNP) continue to pursue a wholly partisan path with no room for a shared vision, which, in the final analysis, must be an essential ingredient in the quest for a cohesive society with shared dreams and common goals that are desirable and attainable which would then lead to a truly safe and prosperous society.

It is becoming increasingly clear that if Jamaica is to survive then both the PNP and the JLP must find ways and means to work together for the greater good of the people, which is the essence of good politics in any language or dispensation. Governor General Sir Patrick Allen hit the nail on the head when he once said, “Our nation needs to free itself from the corrosive tribalism which has impeded a unified attack on our ingrained socio-economic problems.” He went on to state that “all leaders in all sectors must liberate the genius, which is within them to craft and implement policies and programmes for the long-term good of the country regardless of the impact on the ballot box, membership loyalty, or the short-term bottom line”.

Against this challenging background, Jamaicans and their leaders must begin to embrace the concept of interdependence. What is interdependence? The dictionary defines interdependence as the condition of a group of people or things that all depend on each other. In other words, a reciprocal relationship in which no one entity gets the better of the other, but there is harmony and fixity of purpose.

Says one writer: “The idea that two parties in a conflict need each other to complete their own tasks” is what it is all about. “Resolving a conflict becomes more important for both parties if they are interdependent.” And Jacqueline Grennan Wexler puts it best: “Today the mission of one institution can be accomplished only by recognising that it lives in an interdependent world with conflicts and overlapping interests.”

Regrettably, in today’s Jamaica, there is a tit-for-tat mentality between the two major political parties and their respective followers.

The PNP and the JLP had better wake up and smell the coffee. Independence, whether from a partisan or nationalistic standpoint, signifies nothing worthwhile if treated in a cosmetic way. Indeed, the pursuit of interdependence should see Jamaica with much alacrity asserting its full sovereignty by relinquishing its last vestige of colonialism, while embracing in a unified way constitutional reform in a bid to bring about a new Jamaica with respect to promoting, developing, and sustaining Brand Jamaica, which has become a worldwide phenomenon. In this regard, the continuing phenomenal successes of Jamaicans on the world stage in sports, music, and many other spheres should help remind us that we are a great people, little but tallawah. Instead, we are more focused on fighting for the power and the glory, the money and the fame, while Jah kingdom goes to waste.

That great visionary Mahatma Gandhi made this observation in 1929: “Interdependence is and ought to be as much the ideal of man as self-sufficiency. Man is a social being. Without interrelation with society he cannot realise his oneness with the universe or suppress his egotism. His social interdependence enables him to test his faith and to prove to himself on the touchstone of reality.”

The Jamaican experience can be likened to human existence. When a child is born, for several years he is dependent on his parents; then, when he attains adulthood, he is supposed to become independent. However, in his later years, as he gets older, his very existence will depend on his having an interdependent relationship.

Jamaica has now matured, even as it celebrates its 61st anniversary, and the only way forward that will not take us backward and downhill must be a spirit of interdependence. Let this be the new buzzword, the mantra, as we desperately seek to reach the Promised Land.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness continues to berate those whom he says persist in declaring that “nutten nah gwaan”, but he needs to take stock of what is really happening on the ground and attend to those issues that have been clouding his Administration’s successes. The bottom line is that many people are suffering and not experiencing prosperity or safety in their lives, and then there is the arrogance and the top-down approach that the Government is pursuing, which in essence is making the rich richer and the poor poorer. Wake up and smell the coffee, Sir.

Especially now that the silly season has begun, the Jamaica Labour Party sensing that it is losing ground, like a cornered animal, is gnashing its teeth on the defensive, while the People’s National Party — that has smelled blood, so to speak — is offensively moving in for the kill, figuratively speaking.

Jamaica is on a very slippery slope and it is time that all well-thinking, patriotic citizens become a part of the solution rather than the problem.

Lloyd B Smith has been involved full time in Jamaican media for the past 47 years. He has also served as a Member of Parliament and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives. He hails from western Jamaica, where he is popularly known as the Governor. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or lbsmith4@gmail.com.