JLP honours stalwarts at launch of scholarship fund

The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has continued its efforts to honour party stalwarts during the launch of its 2021 scholarship fund on its 78th anniversary on Thursday. The JLP’s 2021 Scholarship Fund aims to provide educational opportunities for youth who pursue specific subject areas. In previous years, the party has named its scholarships after its former party leaders and ministers of government.

This year, the party has expanded scholarship opportunities in new areas. The six new scholarships to be added are the:

• Edwin Allen Scholarship for Potential and Perseverance

• Douglas Vaz Scholarship for Economics

• Mavis Gillmore Scholarship for Mathematics and/or Science Postgraduate

• Ryan Peralto Scholarship for Computer Science and/or Cybersecurity

• Jeanette Grant Woodham Scholarship for Creative Industries Management

• Ambassador Anthony Johnson Scholarship for International Affairs

This brings the total number of scholarships offered by the party to 15. Party Chairman Robert Montague said that efforts such as these guarantee that the JLP remains the logical party for Jamaicans of varied backgrounds to support. He declared, “We are now the natural party of Jamaica”. Montague also emphasised the efforts of the prime minister to personally raise funds for these bursaries.

During his remarks, Prime Minister Andrew Holness highlighted honourees as he identified the need to acknowledge the contributions of these stalwarts to Jamaica. “A political organisation must always honour and respect the work of those who came before, who charted the course, who made the sacrifice and who contributed,” he said.

Reflecting on his 10 years as party leader, the prime minister recalled his efforts to make the Jamaica Labour Party relevant to the minds of Jamaicans. While he acknowledged the challenges that exist with establishing trust with the Government, he noted that the best way to solve this issue is with a proactive, efficient and transparent government that answers the needs of the society.

While noting the challenges with the COVID-19 pandemic, Holness was optimistic that the economy will recover rapidly in the coming months because of previous efforts at achieving financial stability. He explained, “It is hard to get growth without fiscal stability. We have balanced the needs of the pandemic to ensure that you are safe and healthy but that the economy is still growing so you can get some income to continue to meet your needs and feed your family.”

He touted the successful construction of infrastructure and the increased utilisation of assets as another success for the Government. Although he once again called for the need to restructure the public sector to increase productivity while limiting potential disruptions. Holness added, “We still have a far way to go to make our public sector efficient. It is very important that the public sector understands that it is not there in and of itself. Sometimes that becomes the challenge … The public sector is there to support enterprise.”