ANNUAL REUNION DINNER & AWARDS BANQUET AT STS PETER & PAUL BANQUET HALL, TORONTO NOVEMBER 7, 2009
By Hon. Dennis Lalor
Hon. Dennis Lalor
ITIS A DISTINCT HONOUR AND A GREAT PRIVILEGE TO HAVE BEEN INVITED TO SHARE THIS VERY IMPORTANT EVENT WITH YOU, AND TO BE YOUR SPEAKER. AND I MUST SAY HOW HAPPY AND PLEASED I AM TO SEE SUCH A LARGE AUDIENCE HERE.
MR PRESIDENT, IN ISSUING THE INVITATION, YOU REQUESTED THAT I SHARE SOME OF MY INSIGHTS, AND CHALLENGE THOSE IN ATTENDANCE HOW BEST TO HELP THE K C BOARD AND MANAGEMENT TO ACHIEVE THEIR STATED OBJECTIVES. BUT APPRECIATING THAT NO MAN IS AN ISLAND UNTO HIMSELF, I THOUGHT I WOULD ACCEDE TO YOUR REQUEST BY FIRST ADDRESSING THE WIDER CONTEXT IN WHICH OUR ALMA MATER EXISTS, IN THE HOPE THAT THERE WILL BE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE NEEDS AND TASK AHEAD.
TODAY THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF JAMAICANS LIVING IN CANADA. THE REASONS FOR YOUR BEING HERE ARE MANY AND VARIED BUT I KNOW THAT WHILE YOU ARE PHYSICALLY HERE, YOUR HEARTS ARE VERY MUCH THERE, AND WHILE APPRECIATING THE OPPORTUNI9TIES AFFORDED YOU BY THIS GREAT COUNTRY, DEEP DOWN MANY OF YOU YEARN FOR THE DAY WHEN CONDITIONS WOULD FAVOUR A PREMANENT RETURN - (IF ONLY FOR WEATHER CONSIDERATIONS).
REGRETABLY HOWEVER, AT THIS TIME AS A COUNTRY, WE ARE IN A PERIOD OF GRAVE CONFUSION, AND SEEM TO BE IN THE GRIP OF A PARALYSING FATALISM. WHERE ONCE THERE WAS A BUOYANT ECONOMY, WHERE ONCE THE STANDARD OF OUR EDUCATION WAS THE ENVY OF OUR NEIGHBOURS, WHERE ONCE WE WERE CERTAIN WE COULD WISELY GUIDE OUR SOCIETY,TODAY, SADLY, WE HAVE LEARNED THAT IT IS BEST NOT TO PLAN ON PROMISES AND DREAMS, FOR DESPITE THE REPEATED RHETORIC ABOUT CRIME AND VIOLENCE, POVERTY, SLUMS AND POLLUTION, JAMAICA IS STILL A COUNTRY THAT SEEMS DETERMINED TO FRUSTRATE THOSE WHO LOVE IT MOST, AND THE TEST FOR THE GOLDING ADMINISTRATION, IS WHETHER OUR REPRESENTATIVES HAVE LEARNED FROM THE MISTAKES MADE.
BUT MUST THE OUTLOOK FOR JAMAICANS BE SO DISMAL? MUST IT BE ONE OF DESPAIR? TO GAIN SOME INSIGHTS INTO THE ANSWERS, LET US CONSIDER TOGETHER WHAT ARE THE DEVELOPMENTS OF OUR TIME, THEIR CHALLENGES AND THE POSSIBLE IMPACT ON THE FUTURE OF OUR PEOPLE. UNFORTUNATELY, AS MOST OF YOU WILL BE ONLY TOO WELL AWARE, SINCE THE HIGH LEVELS OF ECONOMIC GROWTH DURING THE 1960’S, JAMAICA HAS FAILED TO ACHIEVE ANY SUSTAINED PERIOD OF GROWTH. IN FACT, OVER THE 37 YEARS BETWEEN 1972 AND 2008, JAMAICA’S GROWTH HAS AVERAGED LESS THAN 2 PERCENT PER ANNUM OR 90 PERCENT OF THE LEVEL OBTAINED IN 1972, WHICH MEANS THAT ON AVERAGE, EACH JAMAICAN IS POORER IN STRICTLY MATERIAL TERMS THAN WE WERE IN 1972. AND WHEN COMPARED TO THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF SIMILAR COUNTRIES MEASURED IN REAL GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT GROWTH PERCENTAGES, ESPECIALLY WITH CARICOM, JAMAICA HAS FALLEN SHORT.
AT THE RECENT LAUNCH OF THE JAMAICA PRODUCTIVITY SUMMARY REPORT FOR 1972-2007, IT WAS REVEALED THAT AT OUR CURRENT RATE OF GROWTH, IT WILL TAKE JAMAICA 40 YEARS TO REACH BARBADOS’ LEVEL OF PER CAPITA GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT. BUT NOT ONLY ARE WE GOING IN THE WRONG DIRECTION, WE ARE SPEEDING UP IN THE WRONG DIRECTION WHILE THE REST OF THE CARIBBEAN IS SPEEDING UP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
OUR ECONOMY, SINCE THE 1970’S, HAS BEEN PROPPED UP BY THE INCREASING DEPENDENCE ON DEBT WHICH HAS CONTINUED TO DATE.
SINCE LAST YEAR, WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO BORROW TO SUPPLEMENT OUR INADEQUATE INCOME, WHICH HAS CAUSED A REDUCTION IN THE COUNTRY’S CAPACITY, RESULTING IN A SLOW DOWN OF ECONOMIC ACTIVITY.
WITH THE LIMITED FISCAL SPACE NOW AVAILABLE TO THE GOVERNMENT, AND THE CURRENT GLOBAL REALITIES, A RETURN TO THE IMF BECAME INEVITABLE. HOWEVER, A NEW LOAN AGREEMENT WILL REQUIRE A POLICY PROGRAMME THAT SERVES THE INTERESTS OF THE COUNTRY AND AT THE SAME TIME SATISFIES THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE FUND, ACCOUNTABILITY AMONG OUR POLITICIANS AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS MOST OF YOU ARE TOO YOUNG TO REMEMBER WHEN THE VALUE OF THE JAMAICA DOLLAR EXCEEDED THAT OF ITS UNITED STATES COUNTERPART. BUT PRIOR TO 1971, THERE WAS A FIXED RATE PEGGED TO THE POUND STERLING OF J$2.00 TO £1. AND IN RELATION TO THE US DOLLAR THE VALUE WAS .833 CENTS JAMAICAN. TODAY, ONE POUND STERLING ATTRACTS ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY SIX JAMAICAN DOLLARS AND THE US DOLLAR TRADES AT EIGHTY NINE JAMAICA DOLLARS.
IT IS NOT THAT ANYBODY HAS DONE ANYTHING TO US, RATHER IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE DONE TO OURSELVES.
RECENTLY, IN LAYING OUT A DIAGNOSIS OF THE CRISIS THAT JAMAICA FACES, PRIME MINISTER GOLDING IDENTIFIED THREE AREAS:
A CRISIS OF DECLINING PRODUCTIVITY AND COMPETITIVENESS
THE CRISIS OF NATIONAL DEBT SERVICE REQUIREMENT THAT CONSUMES AN EVER INCREASING PROPORTION OF GOVERNMENT REVENUES TO THE DETRIMENT OF THOSE INVESTMENTS IN THE AREAS OF SOCIAL SERVICES AND INFRASTRUCTURE PROVISION, THE LACK OF WHICH WILL IN THE FUTURE, CONSTRAIN THE ECONOMY’S CAPACITY FOR SUSTAINED AND ACCELERATED GROWTH.
THE RELATED CRISIS OF THE BURGEONING NATIONAL DEBT THAT HAS SERVED TO STIFLE PRIVATE INITIATIVE BY LIMITING THE PRIVATE SECTOR’S ACCESS TO CREDIT WHILE SIMULTANEOUSLY BIDDING UP THE PRICE OF WHAT LITTLE CREDIT REMAINS IN THE SYSTEM AFTER SATISFYING THE GOVERNMENT’S NEEDS, AND IN TURN, REDUCING THE INCENTIVES FOR PRODUCTIVE AND EMPLOYMENT CREATING ACTIVITY.
PRIME MINISTER GOLDING ALSO LAID OUT THE ELEMENTS OF A VERY AMBITIOUS PROGRAMME REQUIRING A RESTRUCTURING OF THE ENTIRE APPARATUS OF GOVERNMENT, INVOLVING A COMBINATION OF A REVISED TAX POLICY AND TAX ADMINISTRATION REFORM LEGISLATION, TO PROVIDE FOR A FISCAL RESPONSIBIITY FRAMEWORK; ESTABLISHING PARAMETERS FOR FISCAL PERFORMANCE AND ENHANCE TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY, AS WELL AS DIVESTMENT OF GOVERNMENT ASSETS NOT ESSENTIAL IN THE DISCHARGE OF ITS CORE FUNCTIONS, AND A WIDE RANGE OF INITIATIVES IN THE AREA OF INDUSTRIAL POLICY AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION.
WHAT THE PRIME MINISTER DID NOT ADDRESS WAS CRIME PREVENTION AND CONTROL, EDUCATION AND POLITICAL TRIBALISM. ACCORDING TO UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIES’ PROFESSOR ANTHONY HARRIOTT, IF HAVING AN EXTRAORDINARY CRIME PROBLEM IS DIFFICULT, AN EVEN GREATER PROBLEM IS WHEN A COUNTRY DOES NOT HAVE THE INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY TO RESPOND TO IT EFFECTIVELY. EVER MORE DIFFICULT IS WHEN THE COUNTRY HAS NEITHER THE CAPACITY NOR THE COLLECTIVE WILL TO MAKE THE CHANGES THAT ARE NECESSARY IN ORDER TO EFFECTIVELY RESPOND. PERHAPS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE ARENA IN WHICH THE PRIME MINISTER SPOKE, REFERENCE TO CRIME AND VIOLENCE AND POLITICAL TRIBALISM WAS INAPPROPRIATE, BUT IT HAS TO BE REGARDED AS IMPORTANT ELEMENTS IN HIS GOVERNMENT’S PROGRAMME FOR PROGRESS.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, MAKE NO MISTAKE ABOUT IT, THE FUTURE OF OUR COUNTRY IS BOUND UP INSEPARABLY IN ITS NEIGHBOURHOODS, IN THE THOUSANDS OF COMMUNITIES WHERE THE QUALITY OF LIFE IS SET. FOR TOGETHER, THESE COMMUNITIES SET THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR THE COUNTRY.
IF THE SAINT ANDREW HOMEOWNER IS UNCERTAIN OF HIS NEIGHBOURHOOD’S FUTURE, IF THE INNNERCITY MOTHER DOES NOT KNOW IF HER CHILD IS LEARNING AT SCHOOL, OR EVEN ATTENDING SCHOOL, IF THE BOGUE HEIGHTS FAMILY FEARS TO WALK THE STREETS AT NIGHT, IF THE HOTEL, FACTORY OR OFFICE WORKER CANNOT TRAVEL TO AND FROM WORK IN COMFORT OR DECENCY, THEN THE COUNTRY IS NOT WORKING FOR ITS CITIZENS. YET WE HAVE 60 PARLIAMENTARIANS AND 236 PARISH COUNCILLORS TO SERVE 2.7 MILLION CITIZENS. AND INSTEAD OF THE CONSTANT POLITICAL WRANGLING, IT IS IN THESE CONDITIONS, IN THESE NEIGHBOURHOODS THAT THE GOVERNMENT MUST MAKE ITS FIGHTS IN STRENGTHENING THE WORK AGAINST CRIME, IN CLEANING THE STREETS AND PROVIDING WATER AND PASSABLE ROADS, IN MOVING GOVERNMENT OUT OF THE MAZE OF OFFICES AND NON-PRODUCTIVE DEPARTMENTS INTO THE LIFE OF THE NEIGHBOURHOODS.
TO BE SURE, NO ONE MAN CAN WIN THESE FIGHTS. WHAT IS NEEDED IS THE FUSION OF THE COUNTRY’S TALENTS, INCLUDING YOU IN THE DIASPORA, THE DEDICATION OF THE PRIVATE AND PUBLIC SECTORS; THE ABLE MEN AND WOMEN OF THE VOLUNTARY SECTOR. BUT PERHAPS MORE IMPORTANT, WE NEED THE HELP OF THE MEN AND WOMEN OF THE NEIGHBOURHOODS. WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE HIDDEN FORCES AGAINST CHANGE BUT THOSE MUST BE OVERCOME BY THIS GOVERNMENT. WE CANNOT STAND BY WHILE THEY, FOR SELFISH REASONS, BECOME A THREAT TO OUR HAPPINESS AND ULTIMATELY, TO OUR WAY OF LIFE. ALL CITIZENS OF GOODWILL MUST BEGIN THE MOST COMMITTED FIGHT OF ANY TIME TO SAVE OUR COUNTRY. BECAUSE IT IS VITAL TO OUR FUTURE, AND BECAUSE IT IS RIGHT.
AND WE CANNOT STAND BY WHILE MEN AND WOMEN ARE VICTIMIZED BY POLITICS. TO BE CONDEMNED TO SUFFERING OR POWERLESSNESS BECAUSE YOU ARE OF THE WRONG POLITICAL PERSUASION IS SIMPLY UNJUST, AND THE FIGHT FOR JUSTICE MUST CONTINUE, BECAUSE IT IS RIGHT.
WITH INFLATION CUTTING INTO EVERY FAMILY’S ECONOMIC STRENGTH, OUR CITIZENS MUST BE PROTECTED WHEN THEY BUY THE NECESSITIES OF LIFE. AND WE MUST MAKE THAT FIGHT, BECAUSE IT IS IMPORTANT TO OUR PEOPLE, AND IT IS RIGHT
WE HAVE ALL LEARNED, I THINK, THAT EDUCATION IS UNDOUBTEDLY THE GREATEST SOCIAL LEVELER. THE BEST TOOL WHICH MOST PEOPLE CAN USE TO SCALE BARRIERS OF CLASS, AND OPEN OPPORTUNITIES FOR ECONOMIC ADVANCEMENT. OF THIS, THOSE OF US WHO HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF ATTENDING KINGSTON COLLEGE ARE WELL AWARE, AND THE SAME HOLDS TRUE FOR THE SOCIETY AT LARGE. BUT A WISE MAN ONCE SAID THAT “IF YOU THINK THAT EDUCATION IS EXPENSIVE, TRY IGNORANCE”.
AND I WAS PARTICULARLY IMPRESSED BY AN ARTICLE WHICH APPEARED RECENTLY IN THE JAMAICA GLEANER, POINTING OUT THAT WE SPEND BILLIONS OF DOLLARS ON DOCTORS, NURSES,MEDICATION, TRAUMA AND LONG TERM CARE, INSURANCE CLAIMS AND PREMIUMS, THE ARMY, POLICE, PRIVATE SECURITY AND PRISONS, CHARITY AND WELFARE RELIEF TO DUMB PEOPLE WHO BUILT IN RIVER BEDS, AND MAIM OR KILL OTHERS BECAUSE THEY ARE “DISSED”. WE SPEND THOSE BILLIONS BECAUSE OF IGNORANT AND ILLITERATE DRIVERS, CRIMINALS AND CITIZENS WE FAIL TO EDUCATE. THE EXPENSE CREATED BY IGNORANCE IS FOUR TIMES THE EDUCATION BUDGET! IT IS NOT EDUCATION THAT WE CAN’T AFFORD, IT IS ILLITERACY.
BY WAY OF EXAMPLE, A MEETING OF THE PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE OF OUR PARLIAMENT HELD LAST MONTH, CONDEMNED THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION FOR PROMOTING “FUNCTIONALLY ILLLITERATE STUDENTS FROM PRIMARY TO SECONDARY SCHOOLS” AND CALLED FOR AN END TO THE PRACTICE. THIS YEAR, 10,000 OR 21 PERCENT OF THE STUDENTS WHO SAT THE GRADE SIX ACHIEVEMENT TEST (GSAT), THE NATIONAL EXAMINATION WHICH ANNUALLY PLACES STUDENTS IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS, WERE MOVED FROM PRIMARY TO SECONDARY EDUCATION NOTWITHSTANDING THEIR HAVING BEEN CLASSIFIED AS BEING FUNCTIONALLY ILLITERATE, CAUSING ONE MEMBER OF THE COMMITTEE WHO IS A LAWYER, TO EXTEND AN INVITATION TO THE CHAIRMAN TO COME WITH HIM TO THE GUN COURT OR THE HORIZON REMAND CENTRE OR TOWER STREET PENITENTIARY AND SEE THE NEXT STAGE OF WHICH THE MEMBERS SPEAK”.
MR PRESIDENT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THE STARK REALITY IS THAT IN OUR EDUCATION SYSTEM
50 PERCENT OF GRADE 11 STUDENTS LEAVE SCHOOL “UNCERTIFIED”
12 PERCENT OF GRADE 11 STUDENTS PASSED NO EXAMS
29 PERCENT OF STUDENTS WHO SAT EXAMS LAST YEAR PASSED TWO OR FEWER SUBJECTS
63.9 PERCENT OF INMATES INCARCERATED IN 2008 WERE OF POOR OR ILLITERATE EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUNDS
60.9 PERCENT OF THE NEW PRISON POPULATION IS CLASSIFED AS UNSKILLED PERSONS
730 OF THE 1334 NEW INMATES INCARCERATED IN 2008 WERE BETWEEN THE AGES OF 17 AND 30 YEARS.
THERE IS A CLEAR CORRELATION BETWEEN A COUNTRY’S ACHIEVEMENT IN EDUCATION AND ITS ECONOMIC ACHIEVEMENT. I DO NOT WANT TO BE MISUNDERSTOOD, BUT BECAUSE OF THE STATE OF THE COUNTRY’S ECONOMY, TODAY LARGE SECTIONS OF JAMAICA’S POPULATION IS IN THE MOST URGENT NEED OF VARIOUS KINDS OF HELP, FROM ASSISTANCE WITH SCHOOL FEES AND OTHER BASIC REQUIREMENTS TO PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE AT THE SCHOOLS AND WITHOUT WISHING TO BE INVIDIOUS, I CITE OUR OUR ALMA MATER WHICH IS NO EXCEPTION. WHEN I ATTENDED KINGSTON COLLEGE, THE SCHOOL POPULATION WAS APPROXIMTELY 400 BOYS. TODAY, THE ENROLLMENT IS A SHADE UNDER 2000.
A MAJOR PROBLEM BEING EXPERIENCED AT KC IS INADEQUATE CLASSROOM SPACE. PRESENTLY THERE IS NO SIXTH FORM BLOCK, STUDENTS ARE NOMADIC, MOVING FROM CLASSROOM TO CLASSROOM AND WAITING UNDER TREES FOR CLASSES TO END. DESPITE THE EXCELLENT CSEC RESULTS, SOME FIFTY FIVE STUDENTS WHO QUALIFIED TO RETURN TO SIXTH FORM WERE TURNED AWAY DUE TO LACK OF SPACE.
THE SCHOOL’S CRUMBING INFRASTRUCTURE IS IMPACTING THE PERFORMANCE OF BOTH STAFF AND STUDENTS. APPROXIMATELY J$300 MILLION (C$35 MILLION) ARE URGENTLY REQUIRED TO ADDRESS THE SITUATION AND WHILE BEING FULLY AWARE OF THE TREMENDOUS ASSISTANCE PROVIDED IN THE PAST, AND CONTINUING, BY MEMBERS OF THIS CHAPTER IF I MAY BE PERMITTED TONIGHT, AMONG THE KC FAMILY, I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A PLUG AND SEEK YOUR INDIVIDUAL AND COLLECTIVE ASSISTANCE IN MAKING ACHIEVEMENT OF THE GOAL POSSIBLE. THE PRIME MINISTER HAS SAID THAT THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT HAVE THE MONEY TO DO SO, AND IN THE INTEREST OF OUR COUNTRY, WE HAVE TO DO ALL THAT IS POSSIBLE TO FIND IT.
ON A FINAL NOTE, IT SEEMS THAT SINCE INDEPENDENCE, WE HAVE BEEN ON A LONG, SOMETIMES BITTER POLITICAL CAMPAIGN. AND THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN US WILL NOT DISAPPEAR. CONTROVERSY IS PART OF JAMAICA’S VITALITY AND NONE OF US WOULD HAVE IT ANY DIFFERENT. BUT WE CAN AT LEAST RECOGNIZE ANOTHER LOYALTY BEYOND POLITICS, AND IT IS LOYALTY TO OUR COUNTRY AND TO ITS FUTURE - OUR FUTURE.
WITH THAT KIND OF NEW LOYALTY, WE CAN ACCOMPLISH MUCH TOGETHER, NOT OUT OF SOME MAGIC AFFECTION FOR EACH OTHER, BUT OUT OF A SIMPLE, HONEST RECOGNITION THAT IT IS THE ONLY WAY TO ACHIEVE WHAT EACH OF US WANTS. IT IS NOT EASY TO LIVE WITH TURMOIL AND DIFFICULTY. AT TIMES IT IS BARELY ENDURABLE.
YOU REMAIN JAMAICANS DESPITE YOUR BEING HERE BUT BECAUSE YOU KNOW THE KIND OF COUNTRY IT CAN BE, AT ITS BEST.
AND WE REMAIN JAMAICANS NOT SIMPLY BECAUSE WE LIVE THERE BUT BECAUSE WE ALSO KNOW THE KIND OF PLACE IT CAN BE. SO, AS WE APPROACH A NEW DECADE WITH NEW UNCERTAINTIES, THAT FAITH SUSTAINS US AND IF WE CAN WORK TOGETHER LONG ENOUGH AND HARD ENOUGH, WE MAY REDEEM THAT FAITH AND HAVE THE KIND OF COUNTRY THAT SPEAKS TO THE BEST WITHIN US.
