Businesses can be force for good

THE EDITOR: Prime Minister Rowley is correct in saying, "US dollars are very hard to come by and not only must be earned but, once earned, must be highly and carefully prioritised before visiting modern-day, self-proclaimed oracles.”

This entire Massy issue should lead us all to reflect on whether or not distributive justice and the common good are concepts that are understood in our beloved country.

I remember way back in 2012, as chair of the Catholic Commission for Social Justice, I ran a workshop in TT for business leaders to reflect on Cardinal Turkson's (the then president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace) 32-page document entitled Vocation of the Business Leader: A Reflection. In it he offers a vision of how the business community can incorporate their faith in their daily life/work.

It also focuses on the obstacles that businesses must overcome if they are to serve the common good. Businesses must seek to identify and serve genuine human needs without violating the "foundational ethical principles" of business which are human dignity and the common good.

Amidst the global economic crisis, it is noteworthy that the opening sentence in the executive summary of the handbook states: “When businesses and market economies function properly and focus on serving the common good, they contribute greatly to the material and even the spiritual well-being of society.”

I love Massy's vision: “A global force for good, an investment holding company with a Caribbean heart.”

At the heart of the Caribbean heart is the Caribbean person. I urge Massy's executive/board to reflect on whether the company is serving the common good by spending millions of hard-to-come-by US dollars for its executive leadership's training programme, while SMEs and ordinary citizens are catching their "nenen" to get a few US dollars.

Massy's values are truly laudable: honesty and integrity, responsibility, collaboration, love and care, growth and continuous improvement, respect. Under love and care, Massy states: "We believe that everybody matters, and that everyone deserves to be treated with kindness, respect, consideration and compassion."

As Massy celebrates 100 years of being in business, I urge the group to please reflect on whether these latter words are at odds with its priorities in spending what our PM calls "hard-to-come-by" US dollars.

The most significant obstacle for a business leader, according to Cardinal Turkson's handbook, is “leading a ‘divided’ life. This split between faith and daily business practice can lead to imbalances and misplaced devotion to worldly success.

“The alternative path of faith-based ‘servant leadership’ provides business leaders with a larger perspective and helps to balance the demands of the business world with those of ethical social principles, illumined for Christians by the Gospel.”

The six practical principles for business (p17) and the discernment checklist for business leaders (p26), including the appendix, which is "an examination of conscience for the business leader," are very useful tools.

Let's love and care for everyone, because everyone matters!

LEELA RAMDEEN

consultant Catholic Commission for Social Justice