The Editor, Sir:

I am one of those Jamaicans whose firm belief it is that the individual best suited to lead our country out of its current predicament is Bruce Golding. Within the last couple of months and days, however, some of the pronouncements made by the prime minister has shaken my confidence.

At the Jamaica Labour Party's emergency conference on Sunday, the prime minister indicated that he would outline the way forward in an important speech in Parliament on Tuesday. In all fairness he did not indicate the specific time but I, as well as others, are in utter disbelief at the time at which the PM chose to deliver such a heavily anticipated and important speech. Surely the PM knew that the nation, including the media houses were waiting to hear the "general" outline of the extremely difficult steps which we had been led to believe would be announced. We are still waiting.

Surely those well-paid aides as well as the PM himself should have realised that the timing of the speech was of utmost importance, so I cannot understand why he would have waited until most of the nation was sound asleep to make his big announcements. This was a grand opportunity that has been wasted. The prime minister, in his earlier pronouncements created and generated a unique opportunity to galvanise the entire nation, but instead he has wasted this opportunity and in so doing undermined the seriousness with which he must proceed. This episode has raised more eyebrows as to what happened to the Bruce Golding who a decade ago threatened to change our politics with a "different kind of leadership".

All is not lost

Hopefully all is not lost and the PM will soon transform those glimpses of leadership he displayed into a guiding light for our people. It is my hope that he still has it in him. Surely he has the will to cut the public sector where necessary!

He has the will to cut expenditure where necessary irrespective of the political consequences! Surely he has the will to act boldly, for nothing else is expected.

I am, etc.,

NOEL FORBES MATHERSON

noelmatherson@gmail.com

St Elizabeth