Dear Editor,
You are not to use the ways of those who enslave others to enslave your own people. Those not of our homeland are not those who we allow to rule over us. As wealthy and as knowledgeable as they may seem, it is not their place to govern by influence over our people. If their ideas bring illness to our people and ruin our land then we must not use their ideas, but hold fast to what is best for us. The wealth of our land is for ours to use and we must be selective in our choice of business partners. If we cannot manage our own internal affairs properly, we will also lose control over our homeland. When the idea of sending deportees back to our land was first proposed I opposed it. We were told that no visas would be issued if we refused. The government of the day chose to accept them and the result has been a weakening of our law and order and the loss of many lives due to bloodshed.
People speak of “the troubles” and the cause. We must also look at the precursors that have led to the weakening of our society. During the embargo when some with influence chose to resort to illegal means to bring in funds, our leaders objected. But those who betray those close to them choose otherwise. More bloodshed came upon our land and it has now grown out of control. We must unite to rid our land of the evil that has grown upon it and we must regain control over our homeland. We must also regain control over our resources and remove the corruption that is robbing us of our wealth. We must reject the greed as seen in pigs. We must embrace the strength of our own ways.
Ours is not the way of impoverishing our people by taking their health, taking their strength and taking their wealth. We know that the sea level will rise by many feet and that the increasing temperature will make life unbearable near the equator, yet we waste resources where we are below sea level and aid in the localised temperature rise. If the Saharan dust from across the ocean can reach us, so can the problems of climate change and the waters of the Antarctic. The glory of a leader is no greater than the glory of the nation being led. It is our responsibility to ensure that we take higher ground and prepare for the worst. Our homeland has not been secured and we must secure it.
This is and must remain our national priority. Build a bridge only if it will withstand future threats of flooding, build a road only if it will not be easily washed away, and build a school where it will last for generations. We must keep our land from flooding and we must invest in a secure future. If land is taken from our people to build that more secure future, we must place it in a better place where their future is also more secure and they will no longer need to move. The future welfare of our people is and must remain that which guides us.
Sincerely,
Jamil Changlee
