Letter of the Day | The real question is not oil, but ourselves

THE EDITOR, Madam:

Dr Damien King has stirred an important national conversation in urging Jamaica to “leave oil alone”. His warning about the so-called resource curse is not without merit. History shows that natural wealth can weaken institutions where governance is fragile.

But Dr King’s argument, if taken at face value, risks leading us to the wrong conclusion.

The issue is not whether oil is inherently good or bad. The deeper question he raises – perhaps unintentionally – is this: Do we trust our institutions to manage opportunity responsibly? That is the real national question.

To suggest that Jamaica should hope never to find commercially viable oil is, in effect, to concede that we are incapable of governing ourselves with discipline, foresight, and integrity. It is to assume that opportunity will inevitably corrupt us. That is a serious judgement on the Jamaican state and its people.

Yet nations are not doomed by resources; they are shaped by preparation. Countries that have suffered from oil wealth did not fail because of oil itself, but because they entered that phase unprepared – without strong systems, transparency, or a skilled citizenry. Conversely, those that have succeeded did so because they built institutions before the revenue began to flow.

This is where the focus must shift. The danger is not that Jamaica may find oil, the danger is that Jamaica may find oil and is not prepared.

Preparation means investing now in education, workforce training, environmental safeguards, and governance frameworks. It means building a culture of accountability before the first dollar is earned. It means ensuring that Jamaicans – not just external actors – are equipped to participate meaningfully in any emerging sector.

To avoid opportunity out of fear is not prudence; it is paralysis.

Dr King is right to caution us about temptation. But the answer to temptation is not avoidance – it is formation. The question before us, therefore, is not whether oil should exist, but whether we are willing to become the kind of nation capable of managing it wisely.

Jamaica must decide: Are we a people who retreat from possibility, or one who prepares to steward it?

DUDLEY MCLEAN II

dm15094@gmail.com