Author name: Professor Canute Thompson

Mr. Metry Seaga President PSOJ (cc: Former Presidents: John Mahfood, Howard Mitchell, and Keith Duncan). According to your self-statement, the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ), established in 1976, is a national organization of private associations, which seeks to influence national policy in political, social, and economic matters.  This declaration of organizational personhood and purpose […]

Jamaica is in a unique situation, roughly analogous to a dynasty, given that two members of one household, head two co-equal and separate branches of Government.  These are the Prime Minister and his wife as Speaker of the House. While this development is neither unlawful nor unconstitutional, it is not, in my view, a development

My interest in examining the question of racism in Jamaica is triggered by the public response to the depiction of oppression, using the symbol of chains, and the removal of those chains, which occurred at a recent political meeting of the People’s National Party (PNP).  Given that some readers may have seen the video in

The United States of America has entered an unprecedented era of lawbreaking by holders of public office and the normalization of wrongdoing. As such, there is little shock and surprise that a former president has the unenviable record of having been twice impeached and indicted four times.  He faces ninety-one (yes, 91!) charges across these

A week ago, Governor of the Bank of Jamaica (BoJ), Richard Byles, said that Private Sector companies should be mindful of the inflationary impact of wage settlements.  His comments brought widespread public ire and rebuke. In a piece entitled An open letter to Richard Byles – governor of the Bank of Jamaica and published on

Dear Mr. Byles: I am shocked and almost angry at your most recent comments cautioning businesses against excessive pay rises for employees as the country continues to grapple with inflation concerns. You made these comments on or about August 21, 2023. But only a three months ago, on May 22, 2023, you defended the massive

Jamaica’s unemployment rate has hit an all-time historic low of 4.5%.  This figure represents the percentage of the number of people in the labour force who do not have a job but are actively looking for work.  While this development is, at face value, something to celebrate (which the representatives of the government are doing),

Jamaica’s development as an independent nation, now in its 61st year, may be characterized as a series of stops and starts. There have been promising possibilities some of which realized their promise partially and others either stymied or shuttered, but the nation continues to hope.  In my assessment, a rough characterization of the country’s development

The decision of Kamina Johnson-Smith, Jamaica’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, to contest for the non-vacant post of Commonwealth Secretary General (CSG) in 2022, remains a mystery despite so much that has been disclosed. Context and brief history It is to be recalled that in early 2022, at a CARICOM Heads of Government

The world is witnessing what many thought would not have happened in the United States of America, namely the arrest and arraignment of a former president.  Probably the only reason this did not happen to a sitting president is based on the Department of Justice guideline that a sitting president should not be subject to