Remember Lacordaire,Wilson and Tagor, CoP

THE EDITOR: Sometimes it is painful to rise and speak what must be said. This is what the prophets of old discovered – often at the cost of their lives.

In the modern world, the new episode of this drama series is the attack on journalists by many who do not approve of their criticism. The problem here is not whether the journalists are right or wrong. More importantly, the problem lies in the extent to which leaders or front desk functionaries should be more careful when reacting to what they consider as provocation.

As I recall in horror the struggle between the Commissioner of Police and the media, two literary icons immediately come to mind – Rabindranath Tagore and Jean Baptiste Lacordaire. Listen to them:

“We come nearest to the great when we are great in humility” – Tagore.

“Real excellence and humility are not incompatible one with the other. On the contrary they are twin sisters” – Lacordaire.

As an educator, I am not attacking the commissioner for personal reasons. I am speaking to him as I have spoken to former students of leadership. Indeed, I still believe he is currently the best man for the job.

The commissioner is a product of our education system. So far, he has demonstrated excellence in the cognitive and psychomotor domains. However, our education system failed him in the affective domain as it has failed so many of our brilliant sons and daughters.

As a nation and society, we have to start paying more attention to the affective domain and the importance of emotional intelligence. We have to accept that by helping our citizens increase their emotional intelligence, we will be able to empower them to make more positive and brilliant decisions. Indeed, all our leaders and technocrats must shout out as American actress and comedian, Debra Wilson, once declared, “It’s all about humanity, humility, and integrity.”

RAYMOND S HACKETT, Curepe