Ronald Thwaites | When yu han’ in lion mout’…

This is not a time to spar with the major supplier and monopoly distributor of electric power. The company says they need at least US$350 million to fast-track restoration. That’s double what the Cabinet has agreed to lend.

Government expects that the shareholders of the light and power company will inject at least US$ 150 million new capital to complete a quick repair of the badly damaged electricity network. On what bankable assurance is that expectation based? Notice how ominously silent the Jamaica Public Service Company (PS) is.

Why should the JPS shareholders invest more money when they have less than two years more of assured business in Jamaica? With an extension of their licence, it is likely that the entire restoration capital could be accessed without taxpayer obligation. That seems a much more certain prospect than the route Daryl Vaz is now calling a victory. What happens when the JPS uses up our loan money and, as is likely, says they need the remainder and more to complete? Who would be left in the lurch?

When yu han’ in lion mout’, tek time draw it out!

LOWER COST POWER?

I hold no brief for the JPS. Jamaica needs lower electricity costs, so it was reasonable to have a renegotiation of their licence. However Melissa has changed that picture. Our electricity grid, largely exposed to the elements even when fully restored, will not be an attractive item for sale to anyone, especially an investor from whom we expect a cheaper product. Marubeni already wants to cash out their share. That’s not a good sign. There is a clear perception of damaged goods.

So, is the end game a renationalisation of electric generation and distribution? The history of public ownership of this “commanding height” of the economy is not impressive. Huge sums of capital would be needed to purchase, modernise and maintain this vital utility. Where would that big money come from? Or is there some undisclosed ‘friendly’ buyer in the shadows?

RELIABLE

Under the current ownership, electricity has been expensive but much more reliable than before. Isn’t it more prudent to hold strain with them while quickening the development of renewables and, hopefully, negotiating a new PetroCaribe agreement with Venezuela or Guyana?

KNOW IT ALL

We all pay light bills to the same people . If ever we needed another occasion for a consensus solution, this is it. Screaming “evil and badmind” or “War” at one’s contrived adversaries is a demonstration of insecurity and immaturity, not an answer to their straightforward questions which are everybody’s concern.

It is clear that this Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) government considers the People’s National Party (PNP) Opposition as a nuisance and has no intention of a partnership for recovery. Their narrow victory at the polls has convinced them that they have all the power and brains to lead us to the promised land. They don’t.

Recovery from Melissa’s rape is being stymied by the shameful lack of respect for elected councillors who have to beg the Ministry of Local Government for every quattie of resources. This disaster demands virility and unity. Instead, local authorities have been relegated to being tribal eunuchs. That’s a recipe for growing discontent and failure. It’s started already. The slick repetitive press conferences do not reflect the sour reality in the west and the leaden depression and anxiety everywhere.

DEEPER SIGNIFICANCE OF ROAD CHAOS

The culture of road use in Jamaica both creates and reflects what kind of people we want to be. Congestion is sapping productivity, wasting foreign exchange, and filling government’s moneybags, because everything to do with transport is heavily taxed. It can only get worse as we squander more of our money on private transportation. Even the National Works Agency (NWA) recognises that now.

The dominating ethic on the road is that each of us will do whatever it takes to get through. The Road Code applies to other people. After all, my crissas, my screeching bike, your nimble taxi, define our identities. There is no margin for error in our driving and riding. Most drivers are not trained to operate safely or considerately; none are retrained when they transgress, and the unattended mental health strain of these times finds dystopian expression in speed, slackness and one-upmanship. In our thinly disguised contempt for life we mourn the casualties but refuse to change the systems which multiply them.

Certificate of fitness inspection is a corrupt joke. Defective vehicles abound in the chaos which passes for a public transportation sector. Insurance companies, who collectively have the influence to provoke proper road use standards, only collect premiums. So five die in one spill. The elected bigwigs who benefit from our every loss pass us by like the Pharisee on the Jericho road. They will “pass through”our funerals, though.

‘JUSTICE’ DELAYED IS JUSTICE BETRAYED

Then there is the sick absurdity of a murder trial which can’t start for 13 years because the prisoners’ box in the rural courtroom is not large enough to accommodate the many accused. Can it be a surprise when jungle justice is dispensed more in the darkness of ‘targeted operations’ than in cluttered courtrooms?

VIRTUE TRIUMPHS

Contrast the spirit of Teacher Grant at Godfrey Stewart High in Sav-la-Mar who takes it upon himself to run classes for out-of-school children. No salary: just love. While the teachers’ union hitches about swift resumption of classes, their members, many who have experienced loss themselves, have ignored the carping of their leaders and are on the job.

The generosity of spirit, the wealth of eastern Jamaica, is supporting the central and western parishes in their travail. Look at how the artistes and athletes have roped in without asking who is green or orange.

IT IS SO WE MUST LIVE!

Individuals and private foundations, largely without photo-ops and self-serving fanfare, are proving the virtues of solidarity and compassion are at work. Different capacities are combining to ease suffering. Substantial wealth and time are being contributed.

Seeking wealth is good. What matters is that you make money ethically and use it unselfishly. That’s the story which Donovan Lewis, sometimes called the Jamaican Warren Buffet, will relate when he engages with 6th formers and others at 2 p.m. tomorrow at St George’s College. While he is expected to share a personal story, the pathway of his career will surely expose crucial lessons and questions for the nation.

Rev Ronald G. Thwaites is an attorney-at-law. He is former member of parliament for Kingston Central and was the minister of education. He is the principal of St Michael’s College at The UWI. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com