What does it mean to be honourable?

Gordon House, which is also referred to as Jamaica’s House of Parliament, is deemed to be and is oftentimes described as “this honourable House”. This in essence means that Members of Parliament (MPs) and senators who sit in the Lower and Upper Houses, respectively, ought to be honourable men and women, but are they all deserving of such a title?

Surveys done in the United States of America — a country we like to ape — have revealed that politicians, used car salespeople, and journalists are frequently seen by members of the public as the most corrupt individuals in the public space and thus enjoy very little trust from them.

When I decided to run for a parliamentary seat on a People’s National Party (PNP) ticket in 2011, an elderly man approached me in a supermarket with an almost tearful voice, bemoaning the fact that I was about to lose my reputation as a balanced, honest, and respected individual in the society. In the meantime, just about every national poll done in Jamaica over many decades has revealed that a large number of Jamaicans view politicians as corrupt individuals who cannot be trusted.

While it may be argued — and not successfully so — that this may well be a case of perception more than reality, several of our politicians have figured in a number of scandals as well as allegations of corruption. Unfortunately, very few of these individuals have ended up “wearing short pants” as many of such cases have been covered up or otherwise dismissed by the relevant authorities, usually on the basis that there is not enough concrete evidence that can stand up in a court of law. Needless to say, these politicians are seen as men and women who are above the law and, as such, are untouchables.

Corruption in Jamaica, especially in the political arena, has been listed as being among the main contributors to the killing of the Jamaican economy — the others being crime, a bungling bureaucracy, mismanagement, and waste. A close look at these causes would strongly suggest that our elected representatives are very much a part of the problem, more so than the solution.

In this context, politicians are seen as thieves who cannot help but to put their sticky fingers in the public purse. The current shroud of mystery surrounding the so-called “illicit six” has helped to reinforce the view among John Public that corruption is entrenched in the body politic.

What is even more alarming and disconcerting is that various verbal gymnastics and political manoeuvrings have been persistently applied to prevent the public from knowing who these “honourable people” are. Indeed, the potent question that may well be asked is: Is this a case of honour among thieves?

In an age when there has been much talk about values and attitudes amidst the repeated calls for greater levels of accountability, truth, and transparency among our parliamentarians, it boggles the mind as to why our politicians have so far failed to fully embrace the principles that would lead them to help perpetuate better and effective governance practices. Against this backdrop, isn’t it ironic that so few of our MPs have seen the need to attend town hall meetings to discuss what their job descriptions should be? And where is the leadership in all of this?

Surely both the Jamaica Labour Party leader and prime minister, Andrew Holness, as well as People’s National Party president and Opposition leader, Mark Golding, should crack the whip and insist that their MPs show up and be counted! This is a national disgrace. Indeed, a most dishonourable state of affairs.

Steven Covey in his book entitled 7 Habits of Highly Effective People said: “Principles are not values. A gang of thieves can share values, but they are in violation of fundamental principles. Principles are the territory. Values are maps. When we value correct principles, we have truth — knowledge of things as they are.” In this case, as far as the Government is concerned, collective responsibility should also be collective guilt. But who is willing to bell the cat? Why is there a lack of transformational leadership, Holness and Golding?

In my view, even with the best of intentions, the National Integrity Action (NIA) so far has not succeeded in clearly defining “corruption” in the minds of Jamaicans. This is by no means to discredit the work of this organisation, which many times has been a lone voice in the wilderness. It behoves the NIA, however, to launch an even more intensive campaign which involves defining the true role of an MP within the context of being an honourable servant of the people.

What is needed is a collective will that transcends narrow partisan considerations. But corruption has become so endemic in the Jamaican psyche it will take a generational shift to bring about meaningful transformation. In this vein, a national consensus must become paramount. But is this possible in an environment in which even the colour that one wears defines one’s existence?

And in this regard, character education should be taught from the basic school right up to the tertiary level, bearing in mind the all-pervasive “ah nu nutten” mentality among Jamaicans who feel that it is okay to “tief”, just don’t get caught! In this socio-economic environment in which the cost of living (as well as dying) is very high and Jamaicans have become infected with a very serious case of consumerism, larceny, embezzlement, pilfering, and scamming have become most commonplace. Perhaps that is why I recently heard an angry man bellow, “Govament a di biggest scammer!”

Renowned British parliamentarian Diane Abbott once noted that “corruption in public life is not a problem for Jamaica alone. Where you have politicians and money, you inevitably have corruption.” So are we looking at a catch-22 situation, damned if you do and damned if you don’t? Is there any practical way that politicians as legislators can be separated from the public purse? Then again, it is not just the elected representative who is likely to plunder the national till. It is well known that theft, bribery, graft, and corruption of all stripes are to be found in the Jamaica public service, but somehow the MPs and councillors are the ones who are most fingered by civil society and the media. Incidentally, this is why the fine-tuning of a job description for MPs is so vitally important.

According to Buju Banton, in one of his popular songs, “tief never love fi see tief with long bag”. Many who accuse politicians or other public servants of corruption are themselves corrupt but oftentimes become embittered because their snouts are far removed from the trough.

In all of this the Church prefers to spend more time tackling peripheral issues rather than, like Jesus, going after the corrupt. And surely the fight against corruption should be an area of national life in which the Church ought to engage with much more courage, energy, and stick-to-itiveness.

If corruption is Jamaica’s greatest stumbling block to prosperity, then it seems to this writer that this nation will remain overly impoverished for a long time to come unless the culture of dependency is removed and the majority of politicians and civil society leaders are prepared to say enough is enough.

A good place to start is a Truth and Reconciliation Commission. This would undoubtedly help to bring a great deal of honour to our political way of life.

Lloyd B Smith has been involved in Jamaican media for the past 48 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 known as the Governor. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or lbsmith4@gmail.com.