There is a Caribbean saying that one should tie the heifer but let go the bull to roam. Perhaps this is where the term ‘leggo beast’ originated. In Jamaican parlance, a ‘leggo beast’ is an undisciplined young male running wild. In other words, a deviant, uncontrollable youngster who is untamed and oftentimes wreak havoc on the society.

At present, Jamaica has a large number of ‘leggo beasts’ who are committing various criminal acts, including murder, rape, scamming, and robbery with aggravation, just to name a few. They are also known as ‘shottas’, as their weapon of choice in carrying out these heinous acts is the gun.

Some years ago, Dr Michael Coombs, founder of the National Association for the Family (NAF), at its launch, stated that “eighty-five per cent of Jamaican children were born out of wedlock”, which was perhaps the highest in the world. He further noted that, “Research done in the United States and here in the Caribbean indicates that fatherless children are 11 times more likely to display violent behaviour, nine times more likely to run away from home, twice as likely to drop out of school, nine times more likely to become gang members, and more than twice as likely to experience teen pregnancies.”

Perhaps influenced by the slavery experience, common-law relationships have become the norm in Jamaica, with monogamy being the exception rather than the rule. In this vein, many women end up having several children for various men who, in many instances, end up being absentee fathers. As a result, there are thousands of fatherless children in this country who only grow up knowing their mothers and, especially in the case of boys, the lack of a strong male influence has helped to create wayward, heartless creatures of crime — in other words, ‘leggo beasts’.

In this context, the controversial issue of the ‘jacket’ phenomenon continues to rear its ugly head. St James Central Member of Parliament and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Heroy Clarke has once again raised many eyebrows by proposing that there should be mandatory DNA testing at the time of birth, citing that this may be the solution to this age-old problem that has led to many cases of domestic abuse, breakup of family units, and the proliferation of delinquent fathers who feel humiliated and betrayed by their spouses or babymothers.

One company that provides DNA testing disclosed not so long ago that in 2019 70 per cent of the men who were named as fathers had nothing to do with the paternity of the children. Talk about “shame and scandal in the family”.

While this is but a microscopic view of the problem, it is safe to say that there are too many unwanted children in the Jamaican society, and this is undoubtedly one of the driving forces behind the high levels of crime and violence in the country. Boys and young men caught in this web of deception are oftentimes left fatherless and as a popular song says, “I am nobody’s child, just like a river I am just running wild.”

Then there is that touchy matter of homophobia, whereby many Jamaican fathers tend to have an estranged relationship with their sons because they feel that getting too close to them may bring into sharp focus the question of being gay. Indeed, they are afraid to hug their sons and tell them that they love them.

Yet many boys who have become seasoned criminals and in many instances are charged with murder or some other serious crime bemoan the fact that there was never a father or meaningful father figure in their lives, leaving them to be influenced by their wayward peers or adult criminals (gang leaders or dons). Others say they had limited contact with their father or stepfather and what is even more hurtful, their fathers never ever told them that they loved them or displayed any expressions of really caring for them.

Of course, the ‘jacket’, or in some cases ‘waistcoat’, issue takes many ugly turns as one of the many reasons which is proffered is that the child is too “brown and good looking”, even while the suspicious father declares that “me black and ugly”. And there are many such cases out there in which pigmentation and physical features, such as straight versus broad nose or the colour of the eyes and hair texture, play a pivotal role in determining paternity.

Against this backdrop, much turmoil pervades the Jamaican landscape when it comes to parenthood and parenting. Needless to say, for decades the argument has been posited that the root cause of many of this nation’s problems is the breakdown in family life. Yes, many attempts have been made to deal with this ongoing challenge, but this writer is advancing the case for there to be, at the governmental level, a ministry of family affairs, which is a proposal the prime minister reportedly posited from a Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) platform sometime ago but never saw the light of day.

This would seek to tackle the burning issue of family life, which should be treated as a national crisis of tremendous proportions. As far-fetched as this may sound, in the final analysis, if we are not able to tackle this epidemic then, socially and even economically, Jamaica will continue to be, when all is said and done, a lost cause or a basket case.

Alas, in Jamaica, it is still a case of “my mother who fathered me”. Perhaps that explains why Father’s Day, most times, comes and goes with a whimper, while Mother’s Day begins and ends with a bang.

It is no secret that our young men, many of whom have very little attachment to their fathers (whether they know them or not), usually speak glowingly of their mothers who, in real terms, have also fathered them. Just look at the many songs/lyrics that are to be found in the dancehall culture (which represents much of what we know is the real Jamaica) which ‘big up’ mama as against those in praise of poppa.

There is also the unfortunate scenario of babes getting babes. One of the villains in this piece is the predatory stepfather who impregnates his stepdaughter, a most frequent occurrence, especially in the lower socio-economic stratum of the society. What is even more disturbing is that some mothers, because of economic reasons or just blind love, condone or hide this ugly secret so such a baby is born into this putrid environment and, yes, is likely to become in later life a ‘leggo beast’ or ‘hot gyal’.

This nation must harness this problem and deal with it before it is too late and before most of us become victims of this raging monster, bearing in mind that the majority of Jamaicans who are killing or are being killed are, in essence, the victims of this ongoing social phenomenon.

Time come to save our boys! And this is not political, it is a national call to action.

Lloyd B Smith has been involved full-time in Jamaican media for the past 49 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.