Sinckler: Discipline must be encouraged

At the Annual Lawson Weekes Educational Scholarship Programme Presentation Ceremony under the theme of “Celebrating Our Youth” at Almond Bay Caterers recently, MP for the constituency of St. Michael North West, Chris Sinckler, said that the hallmark of building success is consistency.

 

“That is the fundamental thing that separates excellence from ordinary – discipline, being able to repeat the good things often enough and do it almost religiously – you become masters of it – and that calls for discipline. In our society, too many of us unfortunately, do not have the discipline to stick to things, to set the course, to clear a path and to continue to the end.”

 

He continued, stating that this is a characteristic that parents and other adults need to encourage in our youth.

 

“That is what we need to instill in our young people, the ability to be disciplined. To know that it doesn’t matter where you go, it matters what you do when you get there, and that when you get there you set your path – that nobody, friend, foe or in between can divert you from – because you have the discipline to stick to it.”

 

Sinckler, who also holds the post of the Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs, said that ensuring that discipline is a trademark of our children is not always an easy task, especially when parents themselves are faced with adversities whether they be financial or otherwise.

 

“Circumstances are difficult and they will continue to be difficult in one way or another. Sometimes, financial, other times, it is not financial. Other times some of us may have enough resources to do the things that we want but in some other area. It is challenging. So it is not always a straight line, it is not linear and it is not a smooth path. We know that there are peaks and there are draws, so we have to be there for our young people and our children both when they are doing well – up – and when they have challenges – down – just as we should be there for ourselves when we are up and when we are down.”

 

He added that it is a duty that parents must adhere to, not just as a means of supporting their children, but also to advance the gains that this country has made in the past five decades.

 

“We who are bent on doing good, we who are bent on doing things wholesome, being good citizens, promoting our community, supporting our families, we must not be silent in the face of 

anything that seeks to disturb the progress which we have made over the last fifty years of Independence, and which we have made in our own personal lives.”