THE EDITOR, Sir:

I READ with interest the speech given by University of Miami law professor David Rowe as published in your May 8 edition. What is the basis for Mr. Rowe's claim that Prime Minister Miller is the "last democratic hope for the struggling majority of Jamaica's poor"? Surely he cannot claim economic and social progress since, by the government's own statistics, economic growth for the last 10 years has remained anaemic at just one per cent.

In the United States, this 'growth' is considered 'no growth' and for that poor performance alone, elected officials are routinely removed from office. Without economic growth, unemployment remains dangerously high, wages depressed, crime increases, divorce rates soar, the government is forced to borrow to pay its bills, the higher debt reduces available funds to stimulate growth, and so the best and brightest Jamaicans migrate in search of a better future.

Jamaica is a blessed country with ample water, land for agriculture, diverse natural resources, and excellent tourist opportunities. It is also a country with a superb cuisine and it is rich in culture through its music, language and history.

Jamaica is currently economically stagnant and the literacy rate is an embarrassment. The Government has had enough years and ample opportunity to address these shortcomings but has failed. Given the urgent need for fundamental economic and social changes, Mr. Rowe defies logic when he claims that the solution is to stay the course. Do Jamaicans really want more years of no economic growth, high crime, high unemployment, poor infrastructure, and high illiteracy?

I am, etc.,

RANDEL COLE

Randelcole@hotmail.com

New York

Via Go-Jamaica