Oppressive Taxes and the Plight of the Poor

The new tax package that was announced on Thursday, December 17 by the Finance Minister Audley Shaw was a shocker! Never in my wildest imaginations would I have expected the government to come up with, much less announce, that, for the third time in less than one calendar year, not to mention financial year, it has decided to impose life-sapping taxes on the Jamaican people.

It is generally understood that the government needs to balance the books and steer the economic ship of Jamaica to “safe harbour”. This might necessitate the introduction of taxes and other tough measures. However, this latest surprise move has sent shock waves through the soul of the nation at a time when many were getting into the “heart “of Christmas celebrations. We are all still trying to settle ourselves after that shocking announcement.

I find the latest tax package distasteful and unconscionable. This is because this new revenue-boosting move lacks balance and sensitivity to the plight of the poor and reflects that the chief servant and his team are not the kind of managers that Jamaicans thought they were two years ago. There is no indication that the rich will be sharing the burden proportionately, or even equally, with the poor. What about pointing taxes in the direction of the rich? It might seem unjust, for instance, to tax wealthy lifestyle-sustaining government paper after promising a particular percentage interest on returns, but it is more unjust to make the already overburdened poor carry most of the financial load of the government's attempt to "curtail the fiscal deficit".

Where is the government's concern for the troubles of the poor? Has the Bruce Golding administration misunderstood Jesus' words that "the poor you will always have with you"? The government has decided to stand with the rich and further dehumanize, oppress, and marginalize the poor. This is scandalous. Jamaicans for Justice and other human rights groups should embrace the notion of preferential option for the poor and fight to get this new tax package rescinded. This oppressive move by the state must be resisted also by the church, which seeks to advance the agenda of the God of the poor. The church must opt to protect and preserve the sanity and humanity of the underprivileged and deprived.

Mr Golding claimed that "there is simply no alternative to raising new taxes". If this is so, then Jamaica is irrefutably a hopelessly failed state. I surmise that Mr Golding meant that there was no alternative that he could have presented to the county. On the contrary, there must be alternatives. There must be other avenues and pathways to balancing the budget. We cannot continue to tax this unproductive country to growth and stability. This is the recipe for more social mayhem, and ultimately, for national explosion and destruction.

I suggest that the prime minister lead a multi-faceted team of policymakers, thinkers, and practitioners from various areas and levels of this nation, including the Opposition, in the process of generating a comprehensive, workable, and viable plan for the development and transformation of Jamaica. The leaders of this county must rally the Jamaican people around one common cause and one plan of action going forward. Rather than a top-down, heavy-handed approach to governance and economic management, Jamaica needs an authentically democratic and participatory approach that will help "drive" it in the direction of economic recovery and prosperity for all.

The Gully-Gaza Phenomenon

The Gully-Gaza phenomenon is rather unique and instructive. It is unique in that the two feuding factions are headed by dancehall DJs rather than by dons and politicians. It is instructive in that the craze has engulfed our young people to the extent that even Usain Bolt has come off the fence. Indeed, it suggests that our young people are hungry for leadership and crave for a sense of identity.

The nation was informed of a meeting that took place at Jamaica House between the leaders of the Gaza and Gully crews- Vibz Kartel and Mavado- and some members of the government. Many, including some of my clergy colleagues, have berated and scolded the government for making such a “juvenile” and unnecessary move, claiming that it was a colossal waste of time that amounted to placing a band aid on a sore rather than dealing with the cause thereof. These persons are of the view that tackling the economic and social issues of the day is more important than meeting with dancehall artistes.

With full knowledge of the potential repercussions, I beg to differ with those who think that the government should not have hosted that now infamous meeting. Whereas there are more imperative issues to deal with in the country, their urgency does not negate the significance of such a meeting. Let us not throw out the baby with the bath water. We must condemn the vulgarity of the lyrical content of the songs, but we should also seek to meet the people behind them with a view to bringing about positive change. This is the “pastoral” role that the government has sought to play. Indeed, this decisive move might give the government the respite it needs so that it can refocus its energies on more pressing matters.

The reality is that there are historical precedents with respect to the positively transformational role of entertainers on the national scene in conjunction with politicians. Let us not forget that even Jesus met with influential sinners and sought to transform them and use them to transform, although there were more “critical” concerns. It seems that many in the Church have failed to recognize this in distancing themselves from such “sinners” towards whom they should move with the Church's multi-dimensional and multi-directional redemptive message and praxis. The “pastoral” role that the government is playing is one that the Church should be playing in the society. But, alas, the ecclesiastical giant has been found sleeping again!

Gambling in Jamaica and the "nuttin na gwaan" Philosophy

This post is a reflection on the gambling phenomenon in Jamaica in light of the “nuttin na gwaan” culture and philosophy. I read a statement in The Sunday Gleaner of September 20, 2009 that caught my attention and stirred my interest. In an article titled “Church versus racetrack” on page A5, a man by the name of Delroy Brown stated in essence, among other things, that Sunday racing would eliminate the boredom that comes along with Sundays and that horse racing on Sundays would contribute to his going to the track “‘fi win a thing cuz nuttin na gwaan’”.

Fundamentally, this is a paradoxical statement at best and utterly scandalous at worst. One would think that if indeed “nuttin na gwaan” in that Mr. Brown and many others in Jamaica are struggling economically and otherwise by virtue of the painful impact of the global economic recession, he and others like him who find solace in gambling would logically and expectedly desist from such an activity and take another look at their questionable and pernicious lifestyles towards making a change for the better. However, it seems that he has a perspective on life and a philosophy of the Jamaican reality that demands another look.

When Jamaicans say “nuttin na gwaan” they mean, at times and in certain circumstances, that they are struggling financially and they are feeling the economic squeeze. It seems, however, that there is a spin to this that has emerged and is having an impact on people’s attitude to life’s challenges and struggles within the Jamaican context. This “nuttin na gwaan” philosophy posits that if one is experiencing rough economic times, one must try “win a ting” by getting lost in a world that would most likely plunge one into deeper economic challenges and struggles. Essentially, one gets lost in a world that propels one into more social and moral darkness and hopelessness because in gambling one, more often than not, finds oneself in a no win situation.

It is my view that beyond this philosophy lies a self-securing and sanity-preserving psychology. I see an attempt to maintain one’s sense of worth and one’s sanity within a situation in which dehumanizing and oppressive forces are apparently determined to crush the poor and downtrodden into nothingness and social oblivion and uselessness. The “nuttin na gwaan” philosophy and culture is basically a psychological stance that some take in an attempt to retain a sense of “smaddyness” in a country in which their significance is undermined on a daily basis.

Nevertheless, we must confront this philosophy and culture that, despite its self-preserving dimension, is plunging more and more Jamaicans into debt, social decay and moral decadence. Whereas one might object to this confrontation by claiming that gambling, whether on a Wednesday or Sunday, is not inherently wrong, one cannot turn a blind eye to its destructive consequences. We must also challenge those who prey on this “nuttin na gwaan” culture by deceptively drawing the disillusioned and dispossessed poor into their web of gambling with the aim of making a killing. There must be another way for us to make “things run” and better the lives of ordinary Jamaicans.

I suggest a three-pronged approach in this confrontation. First, we must educate our children about the virtues of hard work and making smart choices in order to experience upward social mobility. Second, the government of Jamaica should become more creative in generating more jobs rather than more gambling opportunities so that the mantra would become “things a gwaan” rather than “nuttin na gwaan”. Finally, the church should arise more often out of her seat of comfort and challenge the forces of social decay and moral mayhem via more outreach programmes and humanitarian activities. We must do more for the poor and underprivileged. Things must “gwaan” in Jamaica again!

Tightening up on Slackness in Dancehall

Esther Tyson, Principal of Ardenne High, wrote a very telling column in the Gleaner of Sunday, April 6, 2008, about the rampant and scandalous “slackness” that is promoted by and accompanies dancehall. Interestingly she viewed dancehall not only as a music genre but as “a culture which impacts dress, fashion and body language”. I have always held to this perspective on this indigenous music form. I must commend the esteemed principal for her poignant and perceptive perspectives on dancehall.

It is my view that, paradoxically, emanating from reggae, dancehall music and the wider dancehall culture have done much good and much evil at the same time. A few academics connected to the University of the West Indies have championed the cause of dancehall as a social phenomenon and, indeed, it is a genre that must be recognized as a major Jamaican achievement. It is amazing that such a small nation has been able to contribute so much to the world in the area of original music developments.

However, like many of the dancehall artistes themselves, the dancehall culture tends to promote attitudes, behaviours, and lifestyles that seem countercultural and downright immoral. I believe Ian Boyne has highlighted this aspect of dancehall on a few occasions. I wonder whether the policy makers and power brokers have been reading his columns.

Recently, the Broadcasting Commission had to pull some obnoxiously offensive dancehall songs from the airwaves. Many have affirmed this move, claiming that we must not allow the respective dancehall artistes to run roughshod over whatever is left of the moral fabric of Jamaican society. Others, understandably and expectedly, opposed the moved with vehement claims about their constitutional right to freedom of expression. Be that as it may, any well-thinking person would agree that some dancehall songs do promote immorality and “slackness”.

Some say that music is amoral; they claim that it is not inherently evil or bad. However, a part of the music is the lyrics that can incite goodness or badness, or, as Ms. Tyson puts it, “slackness”. Says Ms. Tyson in her column, “this exposure to unbridled slackness from an early age has ensured that we produce a generation whose morality has been warped from the beginning.” What more can I write. That a high school principal has stated this is quite heartening. Her point underscores the crux of the matter- morality.

The dancehall culture is just an index of the crisis of morality that faces us. We must face this monster head on and defeat it! We must tighten the noose around the neck of this animal called “slackness” now! I call upon all community organizations, NGOs, and the collective Christian presence (church) in Jamaica to implement policies and champion initiatives to steer young people away from this path onto one that is more wholesome and uplifting. We have got to find ways to get the youths to move from the dancehall to the community centre hall and the church hall. May the good Lord help us in our efforts.