Dear Editor,

The highly anticipated general election due in 2025 is undoubtedly lingering in the atmosphere since the recently concluded local government elections held in February of this year.

The quest for power reminds me of the famous fight between Muhammed Ali and George Foreman.

The campaigns are clearly based on two actions: One party, the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), takes pride in its accomplishment of building a solid economical framework that lends itself to meeting the needs of the population by investing heavily in various infrastructure without having to borrow money. The other, People’s National Party (PNP), prides itself on questioning and criticising the progress the country has made thus far with the solid economical framework in place. Notwithstanding, it fails to provide a better way of handling and advancing the country’s economy. Hence, the JLP has earned its place in Government while the PNP is behaving like an entitled child who wants to be given power without having any record of performance.

One can only hope that the slogan — ‘Better mus’ come’ — used by former PNP President Michael Manley that caught the attention of Jamaicans back then is not parallel to the now-trending slogan ‘Time come now’ being used by current PNP President Mark Jefferson Golding that also seems to be getting the attention of many Jamaicans.

It would be catastrophic to taste the bitter medicine of the 70s in the 21st century. The promises on the political platforms are attractive: tax threshold to be increased to $3 million, but in the budget debate no clarity was given about how this increase would be funded. Again, it is easy to get away without providing details when you are behaving like an entitled child. Also recall the dark times under the PJ Patterson Administration: public sector wage freeze; selling of the country’s assets; the Financial Sector Adjustment Company (FINSAC) saga; and the annual decline in the countries economy; and yearly introduction of new taxes. We should really hold the PNP accountable for the state of our country.

The
Jamaica Observer article, ‘The PNP, Michael Manley and democratic socialism wrecked Jamaica’, published on March 17, 2017, written by Garfield Higgins, outlined in detail how successive PNP-led administrations have destroyed the nation.

The JLP has earned many stripes to be the Government of choice to lead Jamaica towards accomplishing its vision for 2030 and beyond. The evidence is widespread: high level of employment; roadworks; and other infrastructural developments, including upgrade of fire stations, police stations, medical facilities, schools, and recreational facilities; investment in the tourism sector; and opportunities for the agricultural community is second to none.

But the entitled may argue otherwise. Its focus is to merely criticise.

The JLP has earned itself another term in the seat of the Government.

In 2018, JLP Leader Edward Seaga stated the PNP was able to make all the right statements ahead of the 1989 General Election but lacked the knowledge of the inner workings of the market economy and thereby could not do the right thing. Currently, it seems that the Golding-led PNP may be saying the right things, but the question is: Is it able to do the right thing? Does it have the know-how? All indications suggest that the utterances are just ‘a bag of mouth’ as demonstrated by the hypocrisy displayed on several occasions, including but not limited to the wage negotiations, the appointment of Juliet Holness as Speaker of the House, and now the constitutional reform.

“Time come now,” chants the entitled ones, desperately in need of power. But what does this mean? Could it be that for them the time has come to halt economic growth, introduce new taxes, and take back the Government simply based on feelings of entitlement?

Will the one that has earned its place conquer the entitled one in the upcoming general election? Only time will tell.

Jim Jones

jim765212@gmail.com