Dear Editor,

Other than the Ministry of National Security, the Ministry of Education (MOE) is where new leadership is needed .

I never needed polls to tell me that the current Minister of Education Fayval Williams isn’t a good fit for that ministry. In leading the education ministry you cannot focus only on numbers, you also need to have a special type of personality and energy, and Minister Williams lacks both.

The education ministry is the second-largest ministry, in terms of budget allocation, which means it is always in the public’s eye. This visibility only makes Minister Williams more unpopular due to her seemingly low-key personality. In my view, she is best suited for the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce or even the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade.

In a Nationwide News Network commissioned Bluedot Insights poll Floyd Green was ranked among top 10 best-performing ministers. Remember, he’s now only in charge of the National Identification System (NIDS) and he’s still in the top 10. This was also the case when he was minister of agriculture and fisheries.

Green is now seen as third in line to replace Prime Minister Andrew Holness as the leader of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP). Only Christopher Tufton and Nigel Clarke are ahead of him, and both are top-performing ministers. The prime minister can’t afford to have one of his most popular ministers and potential party leaders not at the education ministry.

Holness, while in his 30s, was appointed by former JLP Leader Bruce Golding as Leader of Government Business in the House and as education minister. Floyd Green is currently 40 years old so youthfulness shouldn’t be used against him. And he has had experience at the MOE as a junior minister.

Since last year I’ve been calling for a new education minister, so I am not calling for Minister Williams to be reshuffled because of her stance on indiscipline and school rules, I actually support her stance. So I hope Floyd Green, while popular with parents and educators, will not compromise school rules and support indiscipline just to be popular with unruly parents and students.

Teddylee Gray

Ocho Rios, St Ann

teddylee.gray@gmail.com