There is an indecency taking root in Jamaican political culture—one that should trouble every citizen who values integrity in public life.

Increasingly, goods distributed using public resources are being transformed into tools of political self-promotion. Buns, care packages, school supplies—items meant to serve the people—are branded with the faces of politicians and wrapped in party colours. What ought to be a simple act of public service is reduced to a spectacle of personal advertising.

This practice is not only distasteful; it is fundamentally wrong.

A Member of Parliament is elected to represent all constituents, not merely those aligned with a particular political party. Public funds are not the property of any individual or party. They belong to the people. When those resources are used to promote a politician’s image or reinforce partisan identity, the line between governance and campaigning is dangerously blurred.

More troubling is the message it sends. It conditions citizens to associate basic goods and services with individual politicians rather than with the state. It fosters a culture where gratitude is expected for what is, in truth, a right. Over time, this weakens democratic accountability and deepens political tribalism.

There is also a question of character. The need to imprint one’s face on publicly funded items suggests more than poor judgment—it points to a strain of political narcissism and insecurity. Leadership should not require constant visual reinforcement. It should be measured by impact, by policy, and by the quiet dignity of service.

Jamaica has seen examples of restraint. There are public figures who have served without turning every gesture into a branded display, who understood that the office they held was larger than their personal image. That standard must not be abandoned.

At a time when citizens are grappling with real economic pressures, the misuse—whether symbolic or material—of public resources for self-promotion is especially offensive. It diminishes trust and cheapens the relationship between the people and those elected to serve them.

This practice must stop.

Public goods should never be partisan tools. They should not carry faces. They should not carry party colours. They should carry only the weight of the state’s responsibility to its people.

Anything less is a disservice to the very idea of public service.