Mario James, Gleaner Writer

It is a fact that the motoring sector is the greatest contributor to our country's economy. Our passion for automotive one-upmanship is legendary. Sunday Business once carried a headline flaunting an $80-million dollar Audi and the price alone generated a huge buzz, most of it directed towards who would own such a vehicle - and what folk would do if they had the means to acquire it. As an entity, our energies are misdirected because our motives are selfish. Our might is not focused.

But the spiralling cost of living has wrought a very strange series of events. I am old enough to remember when the cost of a patty moved from a buck thirty to a dollar eighty in one fell swoop. At that point I wanted to boycott patty, as five dollars could no longer buy me lunch (two patties and a soda) and transport me to work and back home. I decided I would carry lunch.

No consumer reaction

I waxed poetic on the virtues of resisting that patty hike. But my co-workers would not have any of it. They reasoned, and rightly so, that they did not have a choice; that patty was still the cheapest thing around, and that they could not be bothered to boycott. And I could not make them see that there was no downside when business people decided to raise prices because there was no consumer reaction.

Governments of the past fostered monopolies and, as a result, the consumer had no choice. While I still have an occasional patty, it is not the dietary staple it once was. But to no avail; nowadays, patty has risen to gourmet status; two patties and a soda cost north of two hundred bucks. A 'box lunch' can cost just about the same (albeit without a soda) and is much more satisfying.

But the signs previously mentioned are glowing like neon. My favourite Chinese takeout outlet put $60 on its most famous offering earlier this year. That was the single biggest increase they have ever tacked on, and they thought it was business as usual. But instead it was the straw that broke the camel's back. Their regular customers turned away from them in hordes, so much so that they were forced to issue a more reasonably priced smaller product in order to stay afloat. Having been around for 19 years, this also was a first for them, as they are a restaurant that outdoes their competition on size.

Also this week, The Gleaner carried a front-page story on how decreased electricity consumption has affected the income at JPS. While it can be argued that a lot of the decrease is due to the installation of the bulbs given by the Cubans, it can also be argued that a number of people have installed solar panels and are reaping the benefits of living off-grid. Is the sleeping giant finally cognisant of the power it wields?

Finally, the toll increase. Last week, motorists boycotted the toll road, refusing to accept the more than 70 per cent increase foisted on them by the Trans-Jamaican Highway Ltd. While this is the right thing to do, it means nothing if it is not sustainable.

The knee-jerk, emotional reaction that happened on Monday and Tuesday will be all for naught if the behavioural change is not consistent, not lasting. For just a minute, toll-road users were united. But the motives were still selfish, individuals still thinking as a microcosm.

Strong leadership

Motorists need representation. We need a leader who can galvanise us into a throbbing, coherent mass, capable of quick action and a clear, uninhibited thought process. Singular of purpose, yet with a constitution that holds the rights of each individual driver dearly and without bias.

The swell of emotion following the recent increases was a wasted opportunity. Would it be too naive to think that motorists travelling on a phased basis with respect to the time they leave their homes would alleviate the logjam on Mandela? Maybe so, but from an empirical standpoint, that question will never be answered because it has never been put into practice. Strong leadership can make such a scenario happen.

We need to cast aside the empty rhetoric thats says the Jamaican psyche can only be trusted to act in its own interest, and believe that together we can make stuff happen (sounds corny, but the obvious usually is). I would pay to be a member of a fraternity that has the power to take advantage of situations like this. Wouldn't you?

Want to rant with me or at me?

Email feedback to mario.james@gleanerjm.com.