Had Prime Minister Andrew Holness outlined the case of the illegal occupation of State lands adjacent to the community of Clifton, St Catherine, when he first spoke on the matter in Parliament on October 5, he would not, we suspect, have been subjected to the level of criticism that flowed after the illegally built structures were demolished on October 6.

Mr Holness’s presentation in the Parliament on Tuesday this week gave the nation a clearer picture of the problem and the context in which he, as the minister with responsibility for housing and chair of the National Security Council, ordered the demolition of the buildings.

This episode, we hope, will serve as a teaching moment for the country’s leaders who need to accept that sharing information with the populace offers a better chance of their actions receiving public acceptance as long as what is being done is seen to be just and will redound to the benefit of the country.

It is noticeable that, since the prime minister’s address on Tuesday, individuals and organisations that speak from both sides of their mouths on this issue of squatting seem to have gone silent.

Naturally, there are still a few people who will continue to support lawlessness. However, the views held and espoused by those individuals should be roundly rejected and condemned by law-abiding Jamaicans. For, in truth, those people mean this country no good. They are the types who revel in tarnishing Jamaica’s name and reputation on social media — easily one of the largest sources of information and misinformation. They, we suspect, would have no problem with the country being held to ransom by gangsters who believe that they have a right to operate outside the law and to decide who lives or who dies.

That, based on what Mr Holness said in Parliament this week, seems to be what was at play in the land saga, as some people — desperate for shelter and displaying naivety — gave their money to unscrupulous individuals for land owned by the State.

In his presentation to the Parliament on Tuesday, Mr Holness said he doesn’t want to “leave a legacy where this country descends into disorder and lawlessness”. Against that background, he highlighted a situation that has long been known by many Jamaicans, including the authorities, that land scams are being conducted across the country by people aligned to both political parties.

Mr Holness said he has directed the police, including the Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency, to investigate these matters. That probe, we suggest, should focus on the alleged gangster who is accused of selling the lands adjacent to Clifton, and include State agencies that have responsibility for the country’s assets, for there is very good reason to suspect complicity or negligence on their part in these matters.

Also, given Mr Holness’s declared intention to inspire and lead a change in the way business is done in this country, now would be a good time to seriously tackle the issue of squatting, which, as we have pointed out before in this space, has been embraced by both political parties over many years.

It is, we accept, a complex problem that will not be corrected overnight. But if Mr Holness can start that renaissance, his would be a worthy legacy.