Last month marked the institutionalisation of 60 years of African unity with the birth of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in Addis Ababa. To avoid border conflicts, the 53-member body froze the colonially inherited map of Africa, which...
Fatherhood is a sacred and transformative journey that carries immense responsibilities and joys. A good father is a source of stability, guidance, and unwavering support for his children. With love, sacrifice, and wisdom, he plays an irreplaceable...
June 15 marked one month since the unconscionable announcement by Finance Minister Nigel Clarke to increase the salaries of the political directorate by more than 200 per cent and to increase the tax-free salary of the governor general (GG) by 183...
All across Jamaica, PNP house burning down. When Mark Golding was elected PNP President by a small sample of persons labelled “delegates” (some from PNP “Affiliates”) he promised to have PNP’s Constitution amended to allow all registered party...
Recently, it has become customary in the Western media to blame Russia, without any substantiation, for the global economic crisis. This comes against the backdrop of rising prices of food, fertilisers, and energy, as well as disruptions in the...
It is understandable if you are suffering from whiplash to follow the gory details of the news in today’s Jamaica. We are still reeling from the incredible story released a year and a half ago of Gabriel King, whose mother was allegedly boxed in...
On 25 May 1963, a genuine Pan-African institution, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), was born. The OAU later transformed into the African Union (AU) in 2002. The celebration of ‘Africa Day’ in May 2023, marked 60-year commemoration of the...
In one speech, the prime minister shows comfort with both sides of one issue. He wants senior members of his Government – Mrs Malahoo Forte, Mr Morgan, Mr Warmington, and party Chairman Mr Montague to cease the ‘cass cass’ regarding the Integrity...
The global burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) has reached alarming levels, posing significant challenges to public health. Acknowledging the gravity of this situation, the Ministry of Health and Wellness (MOHW) in Jamaica has taken...
Global plastic production has increased exponentially in the last decades, reaching nearly 400 million tons per year. Of this total, only nine per cent has been recycled. The rest ends up in landfills, and between 19 and 23 million tons end up in...
Jamaicans’ vulnerability to entrenched colonial brainwashing, aggravated by 60 years of failure to begin remedial education, affects every strata of society. So, Jamaica Observer reported (May 30) that eminent Counsel K.D. Knight mounted a solo...
About a decade ago a petty cybercriminal relieved one of my bank accounts of $60,000. From three ATM locations. In the space of less than an hour. It took me about a month for the bank to repay me. Although I asked questions, the bank clammed up...
“... Sun a shine an pot a bwile, but ... Things no bright, bickle no nuff ... Rain a fall, river dah flood, but, ... Water scarce and dutty tough ...” penned Louise Bennett-Coverley. This is likely to be the refrain of teachers, nurses,...
In a visit to the Cayman Islands recently, I was struck by the vast development, especially in relation to infrastructure, in a country which, some years ago, was exporting its waste to Jamaica for disposal. With a population of close to 70,000...
People from all walks of life recoiled in revulsion at the message of injustice that was conveyed in the Jamaican Government’s recent self-pay raise. This increase was two to three times previous earnings with no performance improvement to justify...
Romantic love is hazardous. When it works, one is constantly floating on clouds of ecstasy. When the flame fizzles and you add to it by messing up, your world tosses you into a pit of despair and a most terrible mental anguish. At times there is a...
Since time immemorial, employers and employees have been negotiating salary levels and working conditions. During the 19th century, workers, mainly in UK, Europe and USA, began organizing negotiations through groups called Trade Unions. After...
On February 17, the Centre for Reparation Research at The University of the West Indies convened a public seminar to discuss the University of Cambridge’s “Legacies of Enslavement Report”. This was the first major public seminar focused...
Harry Belafonte, who recently died in New York at the age of 96, was a pioneering Caribbean-American singer-actor who used his fame and wealth to support social causes. Belafonte was the first ever artiste to have sold a million records, with his...
“First, the increase is announced by Mr Clarke,” wrote my lawyer friend. “Then the public outcry and then the refusal to accept the increase by the PM and Leader of the Opposition. Either the increase is warranted or not. But the comedy routine is...
As I promised last Sunday, the reaction to announced salary increases for MPs, Ministers and Councillors has been overwhelmingly contentious. What did you expect from a system that allows Cabinet to pay itself whatever it wants? Democracy demands...
The massive salary increases for councillors, members of parliament (MPs), Cabinet ministers, and the prime minister have angered Jamaicans at home and abroad and led to calls for job descriptions to measure their performance. The critics argue...
Significant changes are long overdue in St Thomas. Now, with over 60 years of independence and colonial retentions continue to batter this parish; causing it to be still the most disrespected and left-behind parish. Morant Bay is the only parish...
Predictions of the imminent end of the Commonwealth are legion, with major events such as the death or ascension of the British monarch provoking especially dire warnings of the Commonwealth’s certain and justifiable collapse. In the public mind...
Martin Luther King, in his famous 1963 speech ‘I have a dream’, noted ‘the fierce urgency of now’ while cautioning against what he called ‘the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquillising drug of gradualism’. Jamaica is at just such an...
