WESTERN BUREAU:

At the risk of stirring immense debate, president of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Lloyd B. Smith, says the island's number one foreign exchange earner, tourism, ought not be the purview of any political directorate.

"The very nature of tourism makes it not suitable for any level of direct political interference and should be left to professionals," Smith told graduates of the Revans University and International Management Centres Association Master of Science hospitality and tourism management class of 2008 at Half Moon in Montego Bay, St James Saturday afternoon.

Urging the graduates, who are members of the 'Action Learning' programme, facilitated by the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association, Smith said that because of the tribal nature of Jamaican politics, it was important to ensure that tourism is not subject to any political footballing in which "when the Government says the glass is half full, the Opposition says it is half empty".

One cause

In criticising both sides of the political divide, he stated that the industry has the ability to unite the nation around one cause, and this could help the country attain critical economic independence.

"Very often, when you have a member of parliament who is minister of tourism, he or she cannot do justice to both entities," he said.

Usually, he added, the minister is required to travel frequently and this affects the effective servicing in his or her constituency.

However, in response to Smith's suggestions, Bartlett argued that a well-organised minister would ensure that structures were in place for proper running of his or her constituency.

"I have done that," he added.

He said governance begins at the divisional level, then goes through the parish councils, so to make a statement of that nature could be deemed absolutely misleading and far from the truth.

"The argument being made is for the separation of executive from the legislative, but that is not the system adopted by Jamaica, which is the Westminster model," Bartlett said.

With the graduates being prospects for a private sector run tourism industry, Smith said that after conducting a SWOT (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis of the industry, his conclusion was that, even with the challenges now facing tourism, Destination Jamaica was still alive and well, and its greatest asset remains its people.

"Let us not be overwhelmed by the doom and gloom that we are being bombarded with every day," he urged the group, warning them that the greatest threat would be "for us to lie down and play dead during the global crisis. We have to be proactive".

janet.silvera@gleanerjm.com