Our nation's 43 rd anniversary of Independence is not only a time for celebration but serious reflection. Indeed there is often too much celebration and too little reflection.

Those who view prosperity in terms of oil and natural gas naturally think we have a very bright future. Those who view prosperity in terms of the overall well-being of our people do not see the future as all that bright.

Violent crime exacerbated by two reckless and senseless bombings in the capital city has left a thick cloud of anxiety and fear over the land. Crime like this has deep social roots. We need to ask ourselves where have we gone wrong; what have we not done?

Some of the factors affecting the quality of our social life cannot be easily controlled, for example, globalisation. Globalisation brings all countries closer together through trade and commerce but it also brings with it a culture of pornography, materialism and individualism. Family life has fallen victim to these.

Another factor is IMF and World Bank conditionalities. Over the past few years we have seen a decrease in subventions to urgently needed social services. While these factors are outside our control others are not, like the quality of the relationships we foster, beginning in the family.

This is where we are failing. We celebrate Eucharist, popularly understood today as a “family meal”, amidst the paradox that very few families have meals together anymore.

Time-honoured values like co-operation, respect, honesty, patience and a good education are being cavalierly cast aside in exchange for the transient blessings of materialism. Families need to take time to retrieve these values; this requires determination and deliberate effort.

We also need to recover the indispensable role of religion in our lives. If we fail in this resolve, we would end up blaming the government for crises we have largely created.

CONTEMPT FOR AGRICULTURE

Creating quality life for the nation implies investing in agriculture and not only in multinational corporations. A nation feels proud when it can boast about being able to feed itself.

Professor John Spence said last week on television that successive governments have never taken agriculture seriously. He added that in the 1970s the food we grew would at least pay our import bill; now, no such luck.

In 2005 there is even less incentive for agriculture. Government seems more disposed to investing in oil, natural gas and aluminum smelting without realising that agriculture is a more beneficial long-term investment. The attitude of successive governments towards agriculture has caused today's young people to view a livelihood in agriculture with contempt.

Enhancing the quality of life in our nation also demands that we be more responsible regarding the environment. The EMA should not only monitor sound levels from various public fetes, but should more aggressively monitor the performance of large companies in this country.

But large companies mean large political connections with the wherewithal to flout the law. We have seen enough pollution of rivers, beaches and swamps as well as the destruction of wildlife over the years to warrant immediate action.

Concern for the environment ought not to be the responsibility of “Fishermen and Friends of the Sea” alone. It is everybody's concern.

As we celebrate our nation's Independence , let us become considerably more pro-active in securing quality life for all citizens of this land.