This follows on from my column last week. The August 11 operation to remove the squatters and their “homes” from the land at Coopers Pen was well planned. It started at 3 a.m.
I had pointed out that they built homes, some made of concrete, others made of wood and less strong materials. The key question is: why did the landowner not enforce his/her ownership rights and court orders for some 10 years?
At that time, men living on the land were rounded up by the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), detained and, by all accounts, taken away from the land. Who ordered the detention and removal of the men?
My attorney friend stated, “I have yet to hear a legal basis for the detention and removal of the men. The JCF has not denied that they rounded up the men and detained them. I believe the detention by the JCF was unlawful and I note that nine men have sued regarding their detention.
“Someone in high authority made the decision. Which brings me to the next question, who in the government knew about the operation to remove the squatters and the detention plan? The PM stated, as reported by The Gleaner on or about August 15, ‘I had no prior knowledge of it, nor did any of our ministers, nor the member of parliament’. Really?
“I find it hard to believe that no one in the Cabinet knew about the detention-of-the-men plan. Moreover, it is reported there was a very strong police presence during the operation and for the detention operation.
“Very senior officers in the JCF must have been involved, especially regarding the deployment of the large contingent of police personnel and the detention operation. The JCF is a politicised organisation. It has been so from before Independence. No senior officer would have ordered the detention operation without conferring with someone in government, especially since the senior officer or officers would know the detention operation is very questionable and may not withstand legal scrutiny.”
DISTURBING IMAGES FOR REAL
Dr Holness took a long time to make a statement and it was weak. He said, “The images are disturbing. My heart goes out to the families who have been dislocated.” You think?
The PM also said, ‘We have been able to respond to the humanitarian crisis that has been created’. All fine and well. The Gleaner stated that “however, the prime minister stopped short of commenting on the circumstances under which the demolition was carried out, saying he first needed to be properly advised on the court decision surrounding the dispute”. I find that statement troubling. Let me explain.
The PM is the most powerful political representative in Jamaica. He has an entire bureaucracy at his beck and call. The minister of justice and the attorney general work for him. I find it disturbing that, once the PM became aware of the incident in Coopers Pen, which was on the morning the event occurred, he did not immediately contact Minister Chuck (an accomplished lawyer) and request an immediate briefing on the legal issues and the court proceedings.
My attorney friend suggests, “The PM should have also contacted the Attorney General and asked to be briefed on the legal issues. The PM had plenty of time to be advised, so that, when the PM finally decided to address the matter some days later, he could discuss the court rulings. To assert, ‘I need to be properly advised on those court rulings’, is not acceptable. As PM, he needs to be aware and on top of things like what happened at Coopers Pen. That is poor leadership. When will he be briefed?
“The PM that I know is a serious leader and not the sort who hopes the matter will fade away and the cool air will give him some breathing space and comfort. A serious leader would have expressed sympathy and compassion and explained to the nation the legal issues involved. He would have faced the nation. Why do I get the impression that Dr Holness ducked? How sad!”
MR GOLDING, THEY BURIED DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISM
Someone ought to tell PNP President Mark Golding that the sort of democratic socialism enjoying vogue in the Democratic Party in the US is not the sort to attach himself to and run with. Granted, I know he is hungry to separate himself from others in his own party who have not yet found themselves or something new to steal from the fertile minds of the bright young men and women in the JLP. But democratic socialism? An absolute no.
There is no doubt that the late Michael Manley was and is a hero to many in the PNP and even some in the JLP. But, when he made an about-turn in 1974 and went off on a sojourn into democratic socialism, one of the youngsters he caught was a certain Mark Wignall who was prepared to follow Michael until next never.
I first voted in 1976 and I did so for the PNP, even though the PNP had used its islandwide state of emergency to place key members of the JLP like Pearnel Charles and Babsy Grange behind bars. The nation was told that these individuals were involved in wrongs.
By early 1977, Michael and the PNP were beginning to occupy the faded part of my politics. In 1980, I voted for Seaga/the JLP. So much for my romp with democratic socialism.
Mark Golding needs to determine his own leadership path going forward in the PNP. One senses that at the very moment that Dr Holness signals that an election campaign is at that point where both parties ought to be at their very best in showing off leadership, Golding will enter his slip-and-slide moments and hand his chances to the JLP’s solid election machinery.
Damion Crawford, who needs to mount a serious challenge to the leadership of Golding, is the sort to know that the season of borrowing from the past will not cut it. He is bright and has spent enough time knowing where and what to present to the people, including team building, if he so chooses to let go of his strong individualistic streak.
By that time, who knows, maybe many potential voters will view the mountain of poor roads islandwide as something that can be talked through and used as the JLP’s new pot of promises, to be passed on to an old opposition PNP in due time at the next election.
Mark Wignall is a political and public affairs analyst. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and mawigsr@gmail.com
