Colin Bullock, a former deputy governor of Jamaica's central bank, who also had a stint as financial secretary, made a point in an article in this newspaper on Sunday, of which the government ought to pay close attention.

"...Sentimentality and cordial interpersonal relations," Mr Bullock reminded us, "are not relevant in rating financial instruments. Nor are rating agencies so concerned with causative origins as with effective solutions going forward."

Mr Bullock's observation was in the context of the recent negative reviews of Jamaica's sovereign instruments by the rating companies, Standard & Poor's (S&P) and Moody's, including the latter's strident warning that Jamaica could have difficulty meeting its debt-servicing obligations.

Straight talking

Mr Bullock did not quite say so, but implicit in his observation is the same point that this newspaper has made several times recently in these columns - that in the face of the global economic crisis, it is important for the Government to end the carping, begin to talk straight to the people and, where necessary, take hard decisions.

Indeed, we believe that the administration, if it has the courage and the will, can take the kinds of decisions that will place Jamaica firmly on the road to recovery and transformation.

The only thing here is that by doing the right thing by Jamaica, Prime Minister Bruce Golding might have to eschew longer-term political ambition and come to terms with the possibility of leading a one-term government.

If Mr Golding has made that psychological leap, he might start sharing with Jamaicans the unadorned facts about the country's economic circumstances, as well as short-and medium-term prospects, without clouding the issue with the political blame game.

Maybe, Mr Golding and his ministers share the facts at the Cabinet table, but the public statements suggest a disjuncture from reality.

Long before we were told by either S&P or Moody's, most Jamaicans understood intuitively that the global credit crisis, and now global recession, would have a negative impact on this country's economy.

If people in the United States and Jamaica's other tourism markets lose their jobs, they are likely to take fewer holidays abroad. If Jamaicans living abroad lose their jobs, it would, over time, have an impact on the amount of money they remit to the island.

A recession in the global economy would likely lessen demand for a major export like alumina, and so on. And, if credit is tight globally, foreign direct investment is likely to decline with consequences for the current account.

Hard decisions

Yet, government officials have largely been serving up a saccharined version of the situation. Ed Bartlett remains hyped and gung-ho about tourism earnings, but has stealthily reduced arrival projections.

And, rather than highlighting 'effective solutions' to an emerging crisis, Audley Shaw preferred to talk about how he planned to shame his predecessor.

As Mr Golding well knows, these are difficult times from which great leaders are sometimes forged. If he feels that he is of that ilk, he can begin to show by telling the truth and mobilising his team for hard decisions, including advising people squarely of the need to reverse some campaign promises.

His party, in the circumstance, might lose the next election but Jamaica would be better for the PM's boldness.

The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should be no longer than 400 words. Not all responses will be published.