Send praedial thieves to prison for 15 years

Not so long ago, the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries disclosed that losses to farmers due to praedial larceny, the decent way of describing dirty thieves who prey on the hard work of others, had climbed to an estimated $14 billion.

Sounds high eh? Well, I reckon that it is much higher than that, but conservative estimates are not too harmful.

When people who are interested in agriculture, like myself, proceed to extend that interest to a practical push, they ought to be cherished, not punished by people who just stand around and wait for the products or animals to reach maturity (sometimes not in all cases) and pounce by running off with their stuff, it is a sad situation.

Farmers across Jamaica have been hit hard for decades; some have even opted out of the industry, which results in lower production; yet nothing serious has been done to deter those who leave them so unhappy, depressed, and low in pocket.

We now hear of a new group of agricultural wardens who are set to join the fray to try and reduce farm theft. Cynical it may seem, but I am not overly optimistic that such a plan will work. Maybe, just maybe, some of those same wardens could become compromised, as happened before.

I would love to see firmer penalties imposed, starting with a minimum one of 15 years in prison if one is caught stealing animals or crops. This habit of people reaping what they did not sow, must end, or at least severely curtailed.

Let’s consider too, putting up the photographs of people who have been convicted for stealing agricultural goods from legitimate owners, at prominent locations across the island. It would be just a start.

Needed: a new look West Indies Test team

It is always interesting to watch teams selected for West Indies cricket duty engage other countries in international competition.

Ladies first now … and as things stand, the senior women of the West Indies team continue to do reasonably well while keeping themselves in the top four. The return to action of Barbadian allrounder Deandra Dottin, after a few years of absence caused by team ‘politics’ has improved the prospects of the team for future engagements.

In the men’s division, the One-Day (50-over) squad does reasonably well, as despite a recent 1-2 loss to Sri Lanka in the Asian country, the team rebounded standing up to the might of England in the ongoing home series.

In the T/20 version, again, the West Indies are among the big guys, despite losing out in the World Cup hosted by the Caribbean and the United States earlier this year.

But my God! What in the name of the Almighty is happening with the Test team, due to host Bangladesh within weeks?

The offerings have been quite limited, which has resulted in the team languishing in the lower order of the Test cricket championship, and there are reasons for that.

For starters, those who select the team or squad must rethink their collective philosophy. Most of the successful Test playing nations choose a majority of their players who participate in all versions of the game. Not so with the West Indies.

Look at India, now engaging New Zealand in a three-match series, and leading the Test championship standings: Every member of that team plays or played T/20 cricket for India. A high percentage of players who represent Australia, England, Pakistan, England, Sri Lanka, South Africa and Bangladesh in Tests, also get to indulge in the shorter versions.

Instead, the West Indies selectors hurl one of the slowest batsmen (they call them batters now) to have played the game … one Kraigg Brathwaite into the team as not only captain, but opening batsman. What a shame. Maybe Brathwaite is a little faster in scoring than the former Jamaica batsman who served as the country’s Minister of Finance, one Noel “Crab” Nethersole, but he continues to put people to sleep in Test cricket and redefines the meaning of the word boredom whenever he gets out in the middle. With an average of 34 in 91 Test matches, you really have to wonder what is happening.

Then, so many of the Caribbean’s cricketers who can score runs and take wickets in Test matches – Shimron Hetmyer, Evin Lewis, Rovman Powell, Brandon King, Roston Chase, and Shai Hope for example,  are set aside for others who often do not know why they were chosen. Those named are among the people who must represent the Test team if the West Indies are to be taken seriously in the international arena. Some prefer the shorter versions, but there must be an arrangement for players to do all versions.

That too, is how the fans will watch Test cricket in huge numbers again, and be relieved of the drab returns and humiliation in matches ending early that Brathwaite and his men now sentence them to.

That sexual claim will not go away

Just as we were led to believe that the matter of sexual misconduct which involved the coach of Jamaica’s national Women’s football team was over, word has emerged  that that is not the case.

Hubert Busby, now serving a second time as coach of the Women’s team, was said to have been cleared by the Ethics Committee of the sport’s governing body, Fifa, last May, following a preliminary inquiry, only for the reputable English newspaper, the Guardian, to carry a story in its online edition, suggesting that the process of clearance had not ended.

Fifa has also said that it could reopen the investigation, the Guardian said.

The paper even quoted the alleged victim, Maloree Enoch, of the Vancouver Whitecaps, as saying in  a statement that she was never interviewed by Fifa or the Jamaica Football Federation when she complained in her official report in 2011 that Busby tried to force himself onto her in a hotel room that same year. The club apologised to Enoch in 2021, when the Fifa committee began its investigation.

“There is evidence to support my allegations and it needs to be investigated,” Enoch insisted to the Guardian.

The JFF now needs to move cautiously. It needs to be satisfied that without a shadow of a doubt, Busby is in the clear. This is a delicate matter, and the federation must ensure that its actions do not bring the organisation into disrepute.

Hope for Harris, but never rule Trump out

Now, now, now, the time is almost here. A majority of the world’s population, I do believe, will be chanting for United States Vice President Kamala Harris to win the election of Tuesday, November 5, over the unstable Donald J Trump, and break down the walls of history by becoming the first woman president of the USA.

From all accounts, it will not be easy though, and if Harris loses to Trump, it should come as no major surprise, based upon poll findings of recent days.

It is my desire on the evening into the night of November 5, to be as comfortable as possible in a friendly environment. I know, however, that there will be an element of nervousness that will be hard to control.

The very thought of having Trump getting a second shot at destabilising the USA and by extension, sections of the world, is not a pleasant one. But, let us hope that the more than 70 million people who are expected to vote on November 5, will make that at just a thought.