Professor Edwin Jones dies at 80
Published:Thursday | March 11, 2021 | 12:25 AM
Professor Edwin Jones has been hailed as a Caribbean luminary with a passion for public policy and management who distinguished himself as the go-to man on deep philosophical matters.
Jones, who had been ailing for some time, died at hospital on Wednesday morning. He was 80.
“He had dedicated his entire life to transform how Jamaicans engage and how they think about public policy,” Professor Lloyd Waller told The Gleaner on Wednesday.
Waller said Jones was his mentor.
“I had beneftted from his tutelage and his mentorship. ... It is a very important part of his philosophy and he has mentored a number of young persons at The University of the West Indies,” Waller stated.
Former People’s National Party President Dr Peter Phillips said Jones served with very high standards.
“Professor Jones was an insightful scholar and public servant who made a major contribution to the development of public administration in modern Jamaica,” Phillips said in a statement.
In addition to serving on several public boards, Jones was a special adviser in the Office of the Prime Minister between 1993 and 2001.
Jones sat on the board of the Public Service Commission from 1976 to 1980 and was reappointed in 1989 and served until 2007.
In 1989, Jones was inducted into the Order of Distinction, Commander class, and was bestowed with the Order of Jamaica in 2007 for excellence in academia and public service.