Dear Editor,

A video in which a lady in rural Jamaica appeared out of nowhere to ask Prime Minister Andrew Holness for a donkey during a community visit in St Elizabeth is making the rounds on social media.

The prime minister was in St Elizabeth to hand over a house under the Government’s social housing programme and appeared bemused by the strange request for a donkey. It seemed funny at first, but after a few seconds it was obvious the lady was quite serious.

The prime minister acknowledged that donkeys had been used by many in the past to transport humans and cargo. Donkeys are mostly used in places that remain underdeveloped and, in a sense, still far behind.

Prime Minister Holness eventually conceded after listening to the plight of this lady, a farmer who has a child with special needs and was finding transportation a challenge. The woman was reassured that she would get the donkey. Both the prime minister and the woman seemed quite pleased at the outcome.

Imagine, it’s 2023 and people have to rely on donkeys to get around and do what they have to do to survive. The irony is significant — poor roads, especially in farming communities, lack of public transportation, water, and other basic necessities of life.

Animal rights activists would bemoan the use of a donkey as a vehicle, describing it as animal abuse. I hope the prime minister and affiliated ministries will consider that a simple thing like a donkey is still a big deal to many in rural Jamaica, where infrastructure is poor and neglected for too long. I am sure we can do better to help to improve the lives of Jamaicans who are simply trying to live and make a living.

It should not be about a donkey, although Prime Minister Holness says there is nothing wrong with asking for a donkey. He acknowledged he didn’t know where donkeys are bought and sold, perhaps he didn’t know that people still use donkeys in 2023 in Jamaica.

I have to ask the prime minister: Will there be an official handing over ceremony for the donkey? I am trying to picture the image of a donkey with a huge bow with its empty hamper basket and Prime Minister Holness saddled on top, riding into the community, a metaphor for life in Jamaica today and how far we’ve progressed as a country — where the reliance on a donkey is still a big deal for many.

P Chin

chin_p@yahoo.com