I have listened to talk shows, television news, read the newspapers and listened to the man in the street and I conclude that what I have heard about Chris Gayle – and am still hearing – is coming from the heart. There is no question about his talents – those skills are not in the discussion. He is a fine cricketer who has earned a great life from the sport. He has contributed much to national and regional cricket as batsman and bowler. Chris Gayle, the man, is the topic – a public figure that can be criticised. In the meantime, prolific Gayle is “raising Cain” in the Indian Premier League guiding the “Royal Challengers to play-off chances” as the West Indies struggle to survive the Pakistani cricketers. The regional team under a new leadership won a Test match after a long drought.

I begin by calling for a Jamaica Test Cricket team. This of course is an idea I encountered in reading an article on cricket and national consciousness – the case of India – just about this time a few years ago when Courtney Walsh contested for the head of the cricket association. It is not a response to this crisis. There is great strength in black nationalism combined with Jamaican nationalism as well as their associated consciousness. We have the players and the potential to develop a new era of cricket in Jamaica. The time has come to discuss this matter regarding a Jamaican Test side. The world is ready for it. The Indian ICC is ready for it and the revolution in West Indies cricket depends on it! Professor Beckles proclaimed that there is a revolution in West Indies cricket. I agree, and this revolution is going to be led by Jamaica. We can do it. Now, there is a tendency in this country that certain people are above criticism and scrutiny. This may be one of the factors associated with our continued underdevelopment, corruption and monumental weakness in all areas of leadership, especially in political leadership in this country.

The professor owes no apology to anyone. He made a point and deliberately chose the words he wanted to use. These words do not criminalise Gayle. The intent of the professor is to make a criticism of Gayle. Let us not lose sight of the point. Generally speaking, Chris Gaye might very well need someone to point out “misgivings” and weaknesses. The forum for that I will not decide, but nothing is wrong with criticisms. We all know that there is another side of Chris Gayle that needs serious improvement and that there are times he might not have kept that high quality of leadership standards set by the greats. In spite of this, he is our cricketer, whether he is a good captain or not, and we must not rule out people improving their leadership qualities. It is the same sort of thing I imagine when political parties are called “gangs” in Parliament – but what do they behave like with the “Let’s take it outside” and “don-style” of behaviour?

It has been a great lesson to have listened to these comments from all levels. I have heard the rapid responses from educated people about how scholars and intellectuals like to take advantage of poor people. I have heard voices of rabid anti-intellectualism punctuated with “tribalist” tendencies – the mode of thought constructed by party politics in Jamaica – “thought sets of green and orange” blinkers. It is also a reflection of our country in which healthy debates are not encouraged and where being objective, free-thinking and having the capacity to intellectualise and criticise is a bad thing. The professor might have lost his point in the choice of words, but the intent regarding being critical of Gayle must not be lost. While we are at it, we must not lose sight of the goal by focusing on the professor. Barbados is ahead in education and has major investments in Jamaica, and those to me are greater concerns than his nationality. We must not lose sight of mediocrity in leadership and that we can no longer afford this type of leadership in Jamaica. If we can attack our weaknesses and problems in the same manner we defend Chris Gayle, we will have no country to fear. Jamaica to the world – the world of Test and commercial cricket.

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