Dear Editor,

I think that most Jamaicans were startled by the audacity of former Prime Minister PJ Patterson who addressed a People’s National Party (PNP) Region 6 meeting on the weekend and gave a critical assessment of the current state of affairs in Jamaica as it relates to employment, the poverty level, and other key indicators concerning how a society is doing.

Patterson’s audacity is particularly illuminated given that in recent times he has positioned himself as a sober and elder statesman. Nonetheless, he lambasted the current Government for what he described as startling levels of poverty and disenchantment in society. His address was given coverage via the local media.

Patterson’s assessment may best be contemplated as brazen and shameless. It appears he has conveniently forgotten that it was under his and the PNP’s watch that Jamaica recorded the largest increases in unemployment, murder, and poverty.

Patterson must have forgotten that while he was prime minister the unemployment rate was at a record high of 16.5 per cent and murders spiralled from 414 to 1,674 per calendar year. His PNP presided over the era when Jamaica was officially branded by international media as the murder capital of the world and the poverty rate was assessed to be at a record high of over 21 per cent.

It is unfortunate that he appears to think that Jamaicans will forget that it was his Administration that promised Jamaica would be “pothole free by 2003” but failed to deliver.

Patterson must be made to recall that his PNP Government’s stewardship was so wretched that it contributed heavily to a meltdown of the financial sector, and one of his Cabinet ministers confessed that the Patterson-led Administration presided over the greatest transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich since slavery was abolished.

This was a time when the Patterson-PNP policies wrecked thousands of Jamaican lives and destroyed much of the black business sector but contributed to a company owned by individuals affiliated with the PNP.

The fact is the Government of Prime Minister Holness recognises that there is much more to be done. But it cannot be disputed that under our watch we are steadily making gains in the area of improving the standard of living of Jamaicans. Indeed, it is no coincidence that the poverty rate is projected to decline to approximately 12 per cent, murders are significantly trending down, and unemployment levels are at a record low of 3.5 per cent, as more people are able to provide for themselves and their families under this Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Administration than at any other time in our country’s history.

Additionally, this Government, from the national budget, has made unprecedented investments in improving the road network and health-care systems, and results are beginning to emerge. This contrasts starkly with the PJ Patterson-PNP destructive era when management of the economy was so poor that there was no room to invest in upgrades to key sectors without borrowing from multilaterals and racking up the national debt.

Patterson’s hypocrisy is further highlighted by the fact that he presents himself as a stern advocate of constitutional reform and the removal of the UK monarchy as head of State yet for almost 20 years when he was in power he remained a Privy Councillor and Queen’s Counsel and made no significant headway in achieving this much-heralded reform.

If Patterson is the best the PNP had to offer, in terms of analysis of current affairs, this confirms that the Mark Golding-led party is bankrupt in terms of ideas to move Jamaica forward.

Quite frankly, given the devastating and painful impact his PNP Administration had on the quality of life of Jamaicans, PJ Patterson would be best advised to resume his silence on the issue of current gains made in several key areas of national life.

Tom Tavares-Finson

Attorney-at-law