Garrison story come to bump

By Peter Espeut

In December 1991 - 22 and a half years ago - my wife and I took part in a peace walk through western Kingston led by the Church. The New Beginning Movement, of which I was a convener, participated, and we began at the St John's United Church in Hannah Town, walked through the Matthews Lane area - a People's National Party (PNP) garrison - and then approached the entrance to Tivoli Gardens - a Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) garrison.

A kerfuffle ensued as we were denied entry, and it was Archbishop Carter, Anthony Abrahams and Trevor Munroe who negotiated with the gatekeepers, after which we entered the enclave. Based on my experiences, I submitted two articles to this newspaper, and I began penning weekly columns two months later.

Over the decades, I have plugged away at the subject of garrisons and the need to dismantle them, but it has been like watering a dry stick. Write as I might about attendance at the funerals of political thugs, about gun salutes in cemeteries, about the naked award of contracts to dons - whether JLP or PNP - about unpaid water and electricity bills, the subject gained little traction.

Indeed, the garrison phenomenon deepened; Hannah Town - previously a mixed community - was subsequently garrisonised. The two major political parties had shamelessly woven garrisons into the fabric of their existence. It seems like forever that the JLP leader has presided over a political garrison, and now the PNP has selected a garrison MP as its leader. The situation has gone from bad, to worse, to 'wussera'.

Once the Dudus militia barricaded Tivoli Gardens and attacked the Denham Town, Darling Street, Fletcher's Land and Hannah Town police stations, the Government declared a state of public emergency; on May 24, 2010, Jamaica's security forces, with the oversight of the United States military, invaded Tivoli Gardens in an attempt to apprehend Coke. Seventy-five civilians and one soldier were killed.

The dismantling

Under extreme pressure from civil society - including the Church and the private sector, Prime Minister Golding announced his intention to dismantle the garrisons. In my column of July 2, 2010, 'A show of dismantling', I expressed scepticism on the grounds that no JLP stalwarts had supported Golding's call, and that the PNP - which had three times as many garrisons as the JLP - had remained silent.

I was right.

When the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) was government-owned, it turned a blind eye to electricity theft in garrison communities. Not even meter readers (never mind disconnection crews) were allowed in. This, after all, is part of the unwritten contract between garrison politicians and the garrisonistas placed into government housing or on government land: vote for me, and in return, I will distribute scarce benefits and spoils your way; and you won't have to pay any electricity and water bills.

I can think of a few politicians who will argue that this is democracy at work. Their constituents do not want to pay for electricity and water, and as good politicians, they are simply giving the voters what they want.

And if the garrisonistas don't pay, why should anyone else? In a country with 880,000 private households (2011 census), apparently more than half receive electricity from illegal connections, judging from the reported number of throw-ups removed. Happy 50 years of Independence, Jamaica!

The JPS losses - really losses to ratepayers - amounted to billions of dollars, some passed on to paying customers, making our electricity bills higher than they should be; and the rest was paid from the public purse. Over the years, paying JPS customers have been forced by politicians to subsidise JLP and PNP garrisons.

JPS divestment

Unable to sustain the losses, the Government divested the JPS to foreign interests, retaining only a 20 per cent stake. Could the Government really have expected a private company to continue to subsidise political garrisons? Well, the Kelly Tomblin led-JPS has come to the end of its tether, and this week decided to take drastic (if illegal) action in response to long-standing and entrenched illegal theft of electricity.

Is this action by a private company going to precipitate the dismantling of the garrisons, or at least, the withdrawal of some of the perks? I am just as sceptical today as I was in 2010.

The JPS might be bawling, but the majority of the private sector has supported both political parties in their garrison activities. Do you think for one minute that if those who fund the political parties wanted an end to garrisons, the politicians could refuse to act?

Peter Espeut is a sociologist. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.