Some among us are digging deep into reservoirs of misery because, among other bad things, they want to bury us in dark despair. We must resist these acolytes of doom and gloom with every creative muscle. Simultaneously we must acknowledge the great but very surmountable challenges before us.

The majority of Jamaicans will not be conquered by despair. Hundreds of years of chattel slavery did not conquer the indomitable spirits of our forefathers. Hundreds of years of colonialism did not out the invincible determination of our forebears.

The fraudsters who are spewing systematic lies from troll farms and other dark places are involved in a lose-lose game. These miserabilists will be incinerated like moths to flames. Sadly, among other things, there exists an assembly line which produces replacements faster than the process immolation.

“Prayers to the devil every day” is the greatest self-sabotage. Sowers of defeatism and spreaders of deceit have been around from the beginning of time. They will be to the end. Restoring and rebuilding Jamaica stronger is the best way to silence those bad actors who wish Jamaica ill will.

Jamaica overcame gruelling challenges occasioned by the novel coronavirus. COVID-19 was the worst pandemic in 100 years. For those who have short or convenient memories, that battle was just under three years ago. Jamaica was commended by the international community for her skilful management of the COIVID-19 pandemic. Recall there was no globally agreed template for the management of the novel coronavirus. Jamaicans, nonetheless, put their shoulder to the wheel — as they did with epidemics before.

Recall Hurricane Beryl skirted the island in 2024. Many Jamaicans suffered damage to life and limb. The eye of the storm passed to the south of the island, resulting in strong winds and flooding in especially southern coastal areas. Some reports say damage by Beryl caused an estimated loss of 1.1 per cent of Jamaica’s gross domestic product (GDP). Notwithstanding this big setback, Jamaicans got up and got going, again. Why? We are built like that. Resilience is riveted in our DNA.

After a few months we were back on our feet and memories of Beryl had all but faded into the rear-view mirror of many. Jamaicans will not be controlled by ropes of hopelessness and/or bludgeoned by helplessness. Woe is me is not our collective style.

A MAJOR CRISIS

True, Hurricane Melissa has done great damage. Up to the time of writing some 40 citizens had perished as a consequence of the storm’s passage. Some 90,000 families in western Jamaica were directly impacted by the hurricane and 120,000 were left roofless. Scores have lost precious memorabilia.

Minister of Agriculture Floyd Green says there is near-total devastation in key crop lines, including an estimated 90 per cent loss of banana and plantain and significant destruction across vegetables, tubers, particularly yam, and fruit trees.

Green said preliminary livestock assessments show major disruption, including the loss of approximately 40 per cent of the layer flock. Fisheries, he said, have also been severely hit, with 25 per cent of the island’s fishing fleet destroyed, and 41 per cent of aquaculture farmers reporting damage.

Our tourism sector, the breadbasket of the economy, has been badly damaged. Infrastructure in the western part of the country, especially roads, schools, and hospitals, have been hit hard in the solar plexus. Dozens are still ‘kotching’, staying with relatives and friends. Kotching is a most uncomfortable state for most Jamaicans because we are intensely independent. Things are in a bad way on many fronts. But Jamaica has travelled a similar road before.

Notwithstanding this major crisis there is real hope. Jamaica has been overcoming the destruction of hurricanes and floods long before “records of these weather systems started locally in 1559”, according to records at the National Library of Jamaica.

Hurricane Melissa is a big step backward. I am realistically optimistic we will make bigger steps forward. Those who have been entrusted with power to efficiently do for citizens what we cannot individually do for ourselves need to step to the plate. Our leaders need to lead with maturity, and grit. There is a glorious opportunity for the political directorate and related apparatuses to demonstrate that they are not build on sandy soil. All who wield influence and/or affluence must step up to the plate and become what Napoleon Bonaparte called “dealers in hope”.

Jamaica will overcome. She shall rise much to the chagrin of bad actors afflicted by self-aggrandisement. They wish for Jamaica to not only fall on her knees, but on her face. They wait in vain.

NO SUNSHINE LEADERS

The passage of the hurricane has provided a platform for especially our national political leaders to prove their mettle. Those who are genuinely caring and smart will see a big opportunity. On the other hand, those who are suffering with severe imposter syndrome and overloads of the Peter Principle will be exposed.

The “frighten Fridays” in our politics, who use it as a means of satisfying their status deficits, and some of the “never see come see dem” who get absorbed by the trappings of State office and forget their obligations to the people, plus those who use their political appointments as mere crutches of convenience, will now be cast out into the open. This is not a time for sunshine leaders.

This is a time for leadership which can inspire people to shed the doldrums. Leadership that can motivate and marshal resources to help people build back their livelihoods is required. Those who are great at titivating themselves on social media and little else are now like the proverbial brown girl in the ring. Folks want to see your motion. It’s time.

No one with a modicum of sense is expecting superman-like spectacles from our political leaders. What folks are expecting, at a minimum, is keen representation which produces timely and meaningful results, which help constituents help themselves. Again, the passage of the hurricane has provided an opportunity for the political wheat to be separated from the chaff. This is a good thing.

So far I have seen some very conscientious leadership from several on the Administration’s front benches. Daryl Vaz, the minister of energy, telecommunication and transport, has shown that he has the gumption. He gets good results. His timely updates on all social media platforms and in traditional media reassure especially the ordinary citizen that he is on our side. Vaz responds directly to citizens’ — great or small — inquires.

Recently, I say where he posted on X that he had received dozens of messages and in due time he would respond to all. I don’t get the impression that Vaz uses an amanuensis to carefully curate his responses.

Among other things, I pay keen attention to words, facial expressions, and gesticulations. When politicians and others are rendering a ‘6’ for a ‘9’, I spot it easily. Many other citizens can. Understand this, one of the reasons US President Donald Trump is popular with a particular voting market is directly related to his real, or perceived authenticity, on social media. Trump’s use of words which are culturally accessible, registers. His occasional misspellings, and sometimes grammatical errors register. Most people make a few mistakes when writing and speaking. “He is one of us,” is most powerful aphrodisiac in politics. Those politicians who have social media managers posting on their behalf often lose that common touch, which is one of the big advantages of social media. Some political representatives will argue that they are way too busy to respond directly. Really?!

Most citizens don’t have degrees and related technicl knowledge, still they are very intellectually aware. People are not fools; we know that political representatives and others are never too busy to respond and attend to people and things which are truly important to them. That there is societal totem pole of importance which blinds some of our elected and selected leaders cannot be denied. Folks know this.

A word to the wise should be sufficient.

Vaz is a smart politician. He understands the importance of preserving the common touch, even as he walks among ‘kings’. Some in the Cabinet would do well to learn a thing or two from Vaz.

Pearnel Charles Jr, the minister of labour and social security, has been leading from the front. His empathetic way of speaking with and often embracing some of those affected by the hurricane as he helps to deliver relief supplies shows a caring representative who understands the assignment.

Works Minister Robert Morgan, Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, and Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton evidently understand the assignment.

Now is not a time to take refuge behind platitudes.

On the bases of verifiable results, some in the Cabinet, to me, don’t seem to understand that they are in the people business. This is a big weakness. Some Cabinet ministers, quite frankly, need to step up their game.

Recently, there was shake-up at the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM). I think a Cabinet shake-up would energise many.

“The system does not work unless ‘energy’ — meaning determination, decisiveness, forcefulness, and efficiency — is in the executive,” said Alexander Hamilton, one of America’s founding fathers. I agree.

Given the crisis we face, every Cabinet minister, Member of Parliament (MP), etc, has to be like a defibrillator in his/her ministry/constituency, etc, at this time.

In relation to Leader of the Opposition Mark Golding, I believe he should pull over to the nearest layby and hand over the vehicle of Norman Manley’s party to a more able driver. Some of Golding’s suggestions, if the Andrew Holness-led Administration were to accept and implement them, would effectively result in a parallel Administration with Jamaica having two prime ministers. Several of Golding’s suggestions on how to speed up relief distribution and related are fanciful at best; for example, bringing in of foreign professionals to lead the recovery process is a non-starter for me. We have the human resources here.

Golding needs to take a deep dive into how then Opposition Leader Michael Manley cooperated with Prime Minister Edward Seaga after Hurricane Gilbert hit us in September 1988. The result was a master class in recovery. Manley used wisdom.

“Lilies that fester smell far worse than weeds,” is a line from William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 94, meaning sweet or beautiful things that become corrupted or turn bad are far more repulsive than things that were never good to begin with. In other words, corruption is more repulsive than natural vice.

Some of Golding’s suggestions, to me, would increase the corruption decibels.

Giving MPs $50 million is something that all well-thinking Jamaicans should frown on. We have seen already how “genetically connected” contractors who did not go through certain transparent process were awarded contracts amounting to millions. What did citizens get in return? We got shoddily ‘completed’ projects and massive cost overruns. And some known to have molasses fingers became multimillionaires.

We have seen that movie before and ending was the same: Tragic! Hundreds of Jamaicans were left severely traumatised for years.

Golding would do well to examine some of the auditors general and contractors general reports and commissions of inquiry over the last 40 years.

Golding would do well also to use wisdom and cease emitting a vibe of hugging an unusable past.

WATCH THE LILLIPUTIANS!

In my piece here on October 12, 2025 I said among other things: “People elect a Government to get things done in a timely and cost-efficient manner. Individual benefits are crucial to the preservation of a social contract. In return for the certain and consistent satisfying of, especially, individual’s immediate and aspirational needs, citizens entrust confidence in a Government. This adhesive of confidence glues society together…

“When an Administration is bound by the ropes of the Lilliputians it loses internal sovereignty. It then loses agency. Then it starts to lose the confidence of the people who voted it into power. The slide down the greasy political pole then massively accelerates. Already, I am seeing concrete signs that this Holness-led Administration is allowing itself to be tied down by the Lilliputians among us.”

The Administration was elected to govern. Govern!

Garfield Higgins is an educator and journalist. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or higgins160@yahoo.com.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness addressing a press conference at the Office of the Prime Minister recently. (Photo: Karl Mclarty)

Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries Floyd Green on the ground in Black River, St Elizabeth. (Photo: @floydgreenja)