One of the sights of last week was observing a policeman, on his motorbike, forcing taxi drivers to reverse onto a side road, after they had formed a second lane of traffic along Red Hills Road, when there ought to have been only one.

It is a typical sight along Red Hills Road, Molynes Road, Spanish Town Road and others, for taxi drivers to have their own way, and it seems like the police are not doing enough to curb the excesses and recklessness that other motorists have been subjected to for such a long time.

Along Red Hills Road in particular, that delicate section located in the region of PriceSmart, heading to Dunrobin, and passing St Richard’s Primary, has always been under pressure from madmen behind wheels.

So, last Wednesday morning around 7:00, something that most people wanted to see, happened. The flow of traffic heading to Dunrobin was moving a bit slowly. For a few minutes, the opposite lane used by motorists from Calabar High School, along the way to PriceSmart, was shut down. What was happening? Well, after around two and a half minutes, three taxis in a row began to reverse from St Richard’s before ending up along a side road between the school and PriceSmart. Why? The young policeman on the bike had blocked their path in that unofficial ‘second lane’, forcing oncoming vehicles to pull over, or face the risk of getting hit.

He ordered that they park at a section of the side road, and proceeded to issue tickets for what had become the most horrendous activity along that corridor during early morning and late afternoon into evening traffic.

I applauded the young policeman. If I had a bottle of champagne on me, I would have handed it to him and ask him to place it, discreetly, into his locker at either Constant Spring Police Station or at the Police Traffic Division on Elletson Road in central Kingston, until he had the appropriate time to consume the bottle’s content, away from the daily grind of the job. We need to see more of that happening, until the taxi animals settle down.

The constable did well that morning. But what about the coming mornings when he might not be present, based upon his assigned duties? Hell will break loose again, and another round of chaos will emerge, placing commuters in danger once more.

There has to be an urgent fix to the disaster that exists. The police force has over 13,000 personnel on its payroll. Traffic on the road plays a monumental role in determining the achievement of production targets on a particular day. The Police can invest more in turning the wheels of production in the right direction.

What’s next after the Cuban sellout?

Over 270 Cuban medical personnel are back in their homeland, having arrived there on charter flights from Kingston over the weekend. It follows Jamaica’s decision to discontinue the medical assistance programme that it had with its neighbour, after instructions from Jamaica’s new leaders, the Trump administration in the United States, to do so.

It was a bittersweet situation for the Cubans: They missed their biological families in Cuba, but their Jamaican ‘relatives’ were just as important to them. On top of that, they could survive comfortably on what they earned, even if around half of their basic salaries went to the government towards further training of others in the health sector that they benefited from through free training.

People continue to highlight the fact that workers contracted to the Cuban Government are the only ones who have to pay fees as part of a job arrangement. They seem not to understand that athletes on the professional circuit, for example, give up more than 50 per cent of what they earn by way of excessive fees that they fork out to countries which host Diamond League events.

One typical example is England. Remember at one time, Usain Bolt’s reluctance to race in London, because of how heavily taxed he was, based on his earnings? The athletes also have to pay fees to coaches, agents, and others, which amount to tidy sums. 

I spoke to a few of the Cuban personnel days before they departed, and it was gloomy. At the table, Jamaica was losing two consultants with enviable records of service at Kingston Public Hospital. An emergency room nurse was close to tears when reality hit her. 

One of the places to be affected, outside of KPH, is the Miracle Eye Clinic at St Joseph’s Hospital in Vineyard Town, St Andrew. I have been there, and at any one time, I have seen more than 10 Cuban workers in action (minus those doing surgical procedures). They were all nice to patients. In fact, on one visit, I counted three Jamaican employees who had no manners – they would talk to people any way they chose to, quarrel among themselves, and it was left to the Cuban workers to calm things down.

The clinic was headed by one of the nicest people that I have ever met. I can’t remember her full name, but we called her Dr Myra. She was amazing – friendly, polite, respectful to patients, and always willing to assist if there were problems. She is someone that I will never forget.

So, what’s next? When are we likely to see some semblance of attention pointed to largely poor people who cannot afford between J$500,000 and J$900,000 to fix their eyes privately? Sometimes I have to wonder whether or not the road was paved, deliberately, to allow greedy private practitioners to cash in on those who cannot afford to fork out the huge sums that are being charged.

All of this comes against the background of some male leaders whose dysfunctional testicles will not allow them to fight for the ones who elected them, but choose to bow down or kneel at the modern-day slave masters’ feet, one of whom now wants countries to stop ‘importing’ doctors from Cuba … or else!

We are back to those days. It is now a combination of slavery and apartheid, and our leaders are simply bowing to everything. There is no one standing up for the people, who continue to struggle daily, following the rise in oil prices caused by an unnecessary war, spearheaded by lunatics. 

The JC, Edwin Allen show at ‘Champs’ 

Jamaica College among the boys, and Edwin Allen in the girls’ category, must be given special shoutouts for their outstanding performances at the Boys’ and Girls’ Athletic Championship, which ended last Saturday night (March 28) at the National Stadium.

The thrilling victory, which was earned over Kingston College, the runners-up, and Calabar High in third, was well crafted. I had said before that Jamaica College’s depth would put the team at a great advantage to lift their 23 Mortimer Geddes trophy, named in honour of the outstanding former principal of Titchfield High School in the Portland capital of Port Antonio.

From the first of five days, both winners threw the gauntlet down and by day three, it was evident that they would be victorious at the end of the final event.

Boys’ defending champions Kingston College will complain about missteps in the field, and other challenges on the track, which cost them crucial points that would have made the meet closer, but Jamaica College demonstrated true championship energy, as well as managed their athletes better.

It was a great show by JC.

As for Edwin Allen – remarkable performance, to have staved off Hydel High, the school from St Catherine, which won the title last year, showed that northwestern Clarendon had warriors with a ‘Nanny’ style approach to beating the enemy.

West Indies Women’s cricket dying slowly

The West Indies Women’s cricket team were involved in a T20 and 50-over series against world champions and number one team Australia, on the eve of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in a few weeks’ time. At the time of writing, the West Indies were swept 3-0 in the T20 series and were trailing in the 50-over competition.

The series formed part of the ICC calendar schedule, which, in reality, will deflate the West Indies, rather than uplift the team leading up to the World Cup in England and Wales starting next June. It would have been something extra special for the West Indies to beat Australia, following their earlier 1-2 loss to lowly Sri Lanka, but we can all just dream along. It just would not happen. You do not want to be demoralised by the world’s top team so close to the big event.

West Indies women are not in the best ‘shape’. Some of the leading players have grown older and are not as sharp in the field, or with bat and ball. Additionally, the younger players now coming into the mix have not been impressive.

There ought to be a new focus on women’s cricket in the region, caused by inept administrators, in this case an Australian coach who, perhaps, needs a few sips of Foster’s Lager to get things right, and players who are way past their best. It is dying slowly.

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