Let’s build bridges, says PM
Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley last night identified five beacons of renewal which she believes, if taken on in full, would help Barbados recover positively from the challenges the island now faces.
She was speaking during the 85th Annual Conference of the Barbados Labour Party yesterday evening at Christ Church Foundation School, where she encouraged Barbadians to get back to basics in many areas.
The first beacon was for Barbadians to be the voices of accountability as the country faced its current socio-economic landscape.
“I want all Barbadians to remember that if they see anything, to speak up. Creating a society of silence is dangerous,” Mottley warned.
“Speaking truth should be a civic duty for every citizen of this country,” the St Michael North East MP said, noting accountability was needed across the country.
Cleanliness
“If it happens at home, at church, in communities or on the block, it is needed. Regret cannot be the platform to this country’s stability.”
The second beacon was that of cleanliness around the island.
“We have to be guardians of cleanliness. A clean Barbados is a prosperous and a resilient Barbados,” she said.
The Prime Minister noted that Government would do its part to maintain cleanliness, but stressed that Bajans also had a role to play in this area.
She drew reference to new legislation that would be forthcoming to make Barbadians more accountable.
“We will fine people who aren’t listening,” she advised.
The third beacon is for Barbadians to be agents of respect.
“We need to treat each other with dignity and develop conflict resolution. We need to build bridges instead of walls. We need to be kind to each other. To foster a spirit of unity and compassion”.
Mottley said establishing this beacon should not be difficult since it was taught to every citizen as a child.
“If our children aren’t learning it, who is to blame but ourselves? We can disagree without being disagreeable,” she told a packed school hall of supporters, many of whom were dressed in the party colour red.
More dialogue
The Prime Minister also encouraged the country to have more dialogue.
“Let us talk with each other and not at each other.”
In introducing the fourth beacon, Mottley said she was tired of Barbadians wanting only to complain about the problems facing the country.
“We have to be creators of solutions” she said as she introduced that beacon of renewal.
“We have to focus on actions and solutions and creating positive change. Come with solutions. Don’t just come to me with problems. Criticise if you want, but bring solutions. Solutions are not for Government alone. We must all play our part,” she added.
Mottley noted that from January next year, the Parish Speaks initiative would be ideas driven.
“We will be equal to the task in running the relay,” she said about finding solutions to challenges being faced in the current economic climate.
The last beacon was that of embracing global citizenship.
“We can’t follow the world like Britons in Brexit. There is time for insularity. We must open windows of opportunity and inhale deeply. We may have to go outside to do it. We can take on the world and achieve excellence.”
She highlighed this country’s two living National Heroes Sir Garfield Sobers and Robyn Rihanna Fenty who, she said, did it unapologetically.
“They didn’t change who they are to take on the world. Being a Bajan is not a limitation. It’s a launchpad.”
Mottley also cited and defended the Bridgetown Initiative, saying it was not just a policy but a bold initiative.
The Prime Minister said the beacons all required individual action.
“Nothing can stop us once we decide to work with each other,” she said, in her address.
Mottley also said a lot of work had been done in the face of serious challenges, with Barbados registering 14 straight quarters of economic growth and getting eight upgrades in six years from international agencies. ( BA)
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