People’s National Party (PNP) President Mark Golding believes Jamaica is “drifting on a sea of lawlessness and despair”.

In fact, at a press conference on Tuesday, the Opposition leader slammed Prime Minister Andrew Holness for starting the new year by engaging in what he described as “emotional manipulation”, instead of “steadying the ship” and resolving the issues facing the nation.

According to Golding, the country started the new year “facing great perils, as the four C’s [crime, corruption, COVID-19, and cost of living] dominate our daily lives”.

“Violent crime continues to stalk the land, with 37 Jamaicans murdered in the first week of the new year,” he said.

The Opposition leader said, too, that the coronavirus pandemic has entered another phase.

“The COVID pandemic has entered a new and dangerous phase, with a spike of new infections resulting in the health system coming under severe pressure, with hospitalisations rising, even while many doctors, nurses and health care workers fall sick with COVID,” he said.

On the matter of corruption, Golding said it is a “constant feature of public life”.

“There is a constant flow of scandals [involving various Government agencies], but there is a total absence of accountability as scarce public resources needed to fix roads, provide health care and restore the education system are ripped off with impunity,” Golding alleged.

He also pointed out that the cost of living keeps rising, creating an “unbearable situation for many Jamaicans”.

“It is a time when the nation needs calm, reassuring and credible leadership, with a clear vision of hope for a better country and a clear pathway for taking us there,” charged Golding.

He added: “Unfortunately, the prime minister has started the year by indulging in emotional manipulation of the public at a National Day of Prayer, aggressively disrespecting the media at a press conference, pushing an unnecessary and ill-advised squabble with the Maroons of Accompong, and gaslighting the public about the Opposition’s position on states of emergency.”

He then proceeded to ask a series of questions.

“Are you clear where our prime minister is leading our country? Are you clear about our national direction and destination?” Golding asked, adding, “I believe that when Jamaicans ponder those questions, the answers will be a resounding, ‘No’.”

However, the Opposition leader was not finished, as he continued to rip into Holness’ stewardship of the country.

“Instead of steadying the ship by addressing the major challenges facing our nation, the prime minister has sought to deflect attention from them by announcing a reshuffle of his Cabinet,” he contended.

Turning to the issue of crime, Golding reminded that the Opposition has long been calling for the use of zones of special operations (ZOSO) to restore peace and order in violence-torn communities that are out of control while using the police and the military, without “unconstitutionally taking away citizens’ rights of access to the courts by permitting extensive periods of detention without charge”.

“Central Kingston has been under siege from gang warfare for over a year, and very little was done to stop the ongoing murders as calls for a ZOSO from over six months ago were ignored.

“We are glad that the Government has finally responded to the call, although we question the exclusion from the ZOSO in Central Kingston of two small, adjacent communities which are integrally involved in the gang warfare there,” he indicated.

The PNP president remained adamant, however, that the Government is “clueless” as to what to do to bring the situation of crime under control.

“But what is the overall strategy for dealing with the problems of law and order in our country? There is none. Jamaica is drifting on a sea of lawlessness and despair,” suggested Golding.

To tackle crime, the Opposition leader is advocating for a balanced approach by using ZOSOs wherever they are needed, and strengthening mechanisms such as the Peace Management Initiative, which, he said, have proven to be effective when adequately resourced to defuse conflicts on the ground.

Additionally, Golding is calling for a reintroduction of violence prevention programmes like ‘Unite for Change’ to “steer youths away from badness by investing in them to become productive citizens with hope for their future and opportunities to help build their country.”

https://jamaica.loopnews.com/content/golding-rips-holness-says-ja-drifting-sea-lawlessness