Finally … the Gary Welsh auto is in the garage

I waited almost two weeks to see if Commissioner of Police Major General Antony Anderson would not lead a charge to kick Bishop Dr Gary Welsh out of the Jamaica Constabulary Force.

When something finally happened, it turned up a trifle short … the man of the cloth, who had given a motorist a horrendous ‘bly’, after a dangerous road infraction, had himself been spared the rod by the army man.

Now, Bishop Welsh’s replacement is also a man with a PhD – Kevin Blake – a technology genius who might yet be better off serving the force in another capacity to go along with the growth that the organisation is working for.

But anything or anyone is better than Bishop Welsh, who should have been, if not fired, reassigned to a division that he alone is a member of. His office should be stashed with Bibles, because he sometimes behaves as if he is the only one for whom God has a listening ear.

One of the first things that the Bishop needs to get done is determine his true identity. He does not sound Jamaican, although I’m told that he is. But his accent sounds like a cross between the Bugs Bunny Special and a dialect from Madagascar. I’m aware that he joined the Force early, left it, possibly to go to a foreign land, and returned to the constabulary later in life. And so, when he speaks now, you have to wonder if he is putting on a show, like the Mercedes Benz Matinee, or just trying to fit into a groove.

He was certainly not the man to have replaced Calvin Allen as head of the traffic division, and the commissioner must take responsibility for the messy situation. The traffic division needs somebody who has a rugged demeanour. To deal with the hooligans called taxi operators and minibus drivers is a special project that requires someone in the mode of now retired Senior Superintendent of Police Radcliffe Lewis.

By placing Bishop Welsh there, all you were doing was to tell the road hogs that they are now licensed to commit any road breach and get away with a pardon and a public relations stunt saying that you are sorry.

What could have led the commissioner to have contemplated putting Bishop Welsh there in the first place? Only he knows.

Those ‘fool fool’ West Indies selections

It’s Sunday morning, and hopefully, the West Indies will still be involved in a contest – the matter of the second cricket Test match against India at Sabina Park.

The mauling dished out by the Indians in the first Test at the Sir Vivian Richards ground in Antigua last week again exposed glaring weaknesses in team selection that continue to haunt the regional side.

Take, for example, the barefaced choice of ‘pacer’ Miguel Cummins to play in that match. Again, a sloppy decision not based upon facts and statistics. Cummins has been the worst bowler that the West Indies have put in uniform in the last decade, if not since cricket was invented. Yet, he continues to find favour with the selectors. Why? Who is his godfather? As things turned out, he did not take a single wicket against India in the first Test and has been, rightfully, dropped for this match.

I’ve always said that if I decided to put on my cricket clothes again and walk out to the middle to face a team that Cummins is a part of, if Cummins gets me out in any way I would never mention the word cricket again. That’s how bad I think he is. I don’t know if he is cumming or going sometimes.

The West Indies need a collective mineral bath. Captain Jason Holder is a good cricketer but a poor tactician, and the team that he ends up leading is usually not the best that the region can put out. Since the selection policy, and, we are told, the mentality, have changed, why are people like Sheldon Cotterell and Kieron Pollock not automatic choices?

When Jamaican opener John Campbell made his Test debut with a first class average of 30, I asked the question if anyone expected him to improve on that average in Test cricket. Now that he has had eight innings in Tests, if someone can check and tell me that Campbell’s average is above 30, I will take out a massive loan and buy every cricket fan who turns out at Sabina Park, drinks for life.

Campbell’s partner at the top of the order, Kraigg Brathwaite, must by now realise that only runs accumulated can save him. For his drab, even crab-like approach to batting is already a regal turnoff.

Darren Bravo too, needs to get time off to determine if he wants to be a cricketer or livestock farmer.

At this rate, by the time the ICC Test Championship ends in two years, the West Indies will be at the bottom. That should not be allowed to happen.

Health sector needs CT, MRI machines, and more

One thing that I would like to see the Government include in its budget for fiscal year 2020-2021 is a special provision to purchase CT Scan and MRI Scan machines for every State-run hospital.

Jamaica’s health budget is woefully inadequate. Broken down, Jamaica spends US$150 per capita annually, compared to over $6,000 that the United States spends on each of its citizens, annually. And even then, the USA is not ranked in the top 10 best care nations, yielding to Scandinavian nations like Norway, Sweden and Denmark; Cuba, and even Canada.

The Government must move to equip every hospital in Jamaica with at least a CT scanner and MRI scanning machine.

Type C hospitals could start with one apiece; Type B, like the regional hospitals, could do with two each, but when it comes to Type A institutions like Cornwall Regional and Kingston Public Hospital (KPH), no less than three of each will do.

A good CT scanner starts at US$250,000 and goes up to US$2.5 million; while the MRI starting prices for top rate units are from US$1.2 million.

The sacrifice must be made. You can’t talk about free healthcare and when a patient needs a scan he has to go out to do it privately at exorbitant rates.

The Government must reinstitute a charge at hospitals and health centres to foot the equipment bill. A flat charge of $1,000 per patient could be a starting point. Let’s make it happen. This country was never ready, and is still not ready to afford free healthcare. There is no such thing. This ‘pop down’ system will only breed one thing: death. And we are seeing much of that.

Right now, no CT scan or MRI machines can be found at some of Jamaica’s leading hospitals; certainly none in the eastern region of St Ann, Portland, St Mary and St Thomas. Such machines are absent at most of the others. I’m aware of one MRI machine at KPH, but that goes on the blink more often than it stays healthy, due to overwork. How can that continue?

In a country in which less than 20 per cent of the population is covered by health insurance, the citizens need better protection. The State must move to modernise the health sector. It’s not a ‘if’. It’s a must. I expect to see a budget next year of an additional $100 billion to deal with the wellness of this country’s citizens.

Brianna Williams should not lose hope

More will be said about the situation regarding young sprinter Brianna Williams, but it is unfortunate what has happened with the track sensation, what with the failure of a drugs test.

The handlers of the 17-year-old have said that they will put up a strong defence. Nothing else will do. Until then, let us see how things go.