Re-setting our moral compass
by Jean Lowrie-Chin
It was Shakespeare who wrote in 'The Merchant of Venice':
"Mark you this, Bassanio,
The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.
An evil soul producing holy witness
Is like a villain with a smiling cheek,
A goodly apple rotten at the heart:
O, what a goodly outside falsehood hath!"
Thus, when this individual, having been de-certified in the US for child molestation, arrived in Jamaica in 2005, he named his organisations "The Father's House" and "Embracing Orphans", allegedly duping officials. The YouTube clip shows a good-looking man joking about his hometown called Walla Walla in Washington state. When people are fed with the Hollywood and comic book images of saviours like Tarzan and The Phantom, it is scary how easily they can be deceived. Police sent terrified victims who begged to be rescued, back into the arms of the cannibal, Dahmer.
Then we are hearing about wealth advisors who are alleged to have stolen millions of dollars from various institutions. What could have influenced such behaviour by individuals, making their way up the corporate ladder, working in sought after positions? Imagine, Usain Bolt could have invested his money anywhere, but as a keen nationalist he chose to invest in a Jamaican financial house, only to discover that millions of US dollars have gone missing from his account. This type of incident can erode the credibility of our financial institutions whose personnel are in the majority professional and ethical individuals.
This decay in morality has been happening worldwide and so it was welcome news when Yale University announced last month that its Divinity School (YDS) has established a Center for Public Theology and Public Policy with moral movement leader Bishop William J. Barber appointed as its founding director. YDS said the Center "will serve as a training ground for students, equipping them with a moral fusion framework as a guide for their chosen vocations and training them to engage in moral articulation, analysis, and action."
Here in Jamaica, outstanding citizens have cited the influence of parents, grandparents, pastors and teachers who have helped them to develop a strong moral compass. However in societies where materialism has eroded those foundational values, it will now be up to corporates and governing bodies to ensure that their customers and shareholders are protected from unethical employees. Our tertiary institutions include ethics in their business offerings but with this stream of offences coming to light, they may have to beef up their courses. Our churches and schools have been working at this but with issues of poor parenting, the role they play as moral leaders is even more important now.
This column has quoted futurist Edie Weiner who declared that time used to be the greatest luxury, but today it is trust that leads the way. When we encourage our children to be trustworthy, check their schoolbags, promote diligence and loyalty among family and friends, we are building a society that will free us from the corruption that is holding us back.
Recently, Letta Gayle, Mentorship Officer of ICD's Multicare Foundation wrote to CCRP inviting our members to assist in their mentorship programme for at-risk young people. This is a welcome project, and we are sure that the response will be good when the invitation is circulated. The participation of seniors and retired persons in such programmes may bring the tender guidance that these young people had not experienced in their early childhood. Teachers who go the extra mile with their students have experienced this transformation and received much gratitude from past students who have set them on the right path.
Protecting our elders
Those of us who have been lucky enough to 'spend time' during our summer holidays with grandparents in rural Jamaica look back in thankfulness at our grannies' care and attention. However, these precious grandparents are now at risk with the scourge of elder abuse, particularly financial abuse, becoming more frequent.
At CCRP we have heard of a caregiver who took an ailing elder to the bank, persuading her to sign a sizeable withdrawal, and the stealing of furniture and appliances from people suffering from dementia. We are hoping that the Jamaica Banking Association will encourage their membership to take steps to protect their elderly account holders.
We have reports of physical, psychological and even sexual abuse. This is why, for the past five years we have been in dialogue with the Ministry of Labour and Social Security to implement legislation for the care and protection of the elderly. We were advised that a Working Committee was being formed in preparation for this and are looking forward to participating in the discussions.
In checking the website of the Ministry of Health and Wellness we have noted that the certification of the Care Homes listed there has not been renewed since 2021. Our Jamaican elders who have built this country deserve better. We hope that the pleas of CCRP for regular monitoring of care homes and for legislation to protect our elderly will soon be answered.
Special Education Centre for Santa Cruz
As they forge ahead in their efforts to address our special needs community, the Digicel Foundation last week signed an agreement to partner with the Ministry of Education and Youth to renovate and expand the Santa Cruz Basic school to accommodate a Special Education centre for the town and the wider population of St. Elizabeth.
According to a JIS release, "Minister Williams commended the Digicel Foundation, noting that the entity's support to education over the years has assisted the Government's vision to develop the nation's children to their fullest potential, regardless of their social and economic backgrounds."
Senior Operations Manager at the Digicel Foundation, Jodi-Ann McFarlane noted that since its launch in 2004, the Foundation has renovated 19 special needs schools, trained more than 746 teachers and parents in literacy and caregiving, thus benefiting more than 100,000 students.
Promising sports scene
What would we do without the generally positive news that we get from our sports women and men? The Sunshine Girls, fourth in the world got a generous boost from the National Baking Foundation and at press time had levelled the score 1-1 with the England Roses in their Three Test series. We are hoping for a great outcome when the final match is played.
Meanwhile our Reggae Girlz are at a training camp in Florida as they prepare for the Cup of Nations in Australia in February. Our women's senior national team is rated third in Concacaf and have again qualified for the Women's World Cup in July.
With JFF General Secretary Dennis Chung at the helm and the arrival of new Reggae Boyz Head Coach Heimir Hallgrimsson and assistant John Wahl, hopes are high for our World Cup qualifying campaign.
We are still holding out hope for West Indies Cricket with our Under 19 Women's Team beginning their campaign for the ICC Women's U19 World Cup. Cricket is a treasured unifier of the West Indies and we continue to cheer for their return to their former glory.
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