Let us calm down and study the US election; it is what it is. There are accusations of rigging, but there are also many lessons to be learnt by campaign managers.

A friend who had studied and worked in the US noted to me that there are three things that folks in the US are passionate about: baseball, football, and basketball. The Trump managers capitalised on this by showing their ‘Save Girls’ Sports’ advertisement 300,000 times during the various sporting events taking place over the past three months. This ad protested the inclusion of transgender women participating in women’s sports.

CNN host Abby Phillips noted that even as this ad gathered steam, there was no response from the Kamala Harris campaign. To be fair to Harris, she had only three months to pull her campaign together, while her opponent had been campaigning for the past nine years. Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi expressed disappointment that President Joe Biden did not step back earlier in a New York Times report.

Now the US is bracing for all the campaign promises made by President-elect Trump to bear fruit: the deportation of undocumented immigrants, including those with family ties to US citizens, and punishment of ‘the enemy within’, his political opponents.

It is a tense time not only for the US but also for the world, as so much revolves around this leader of the free world. May we look deeply into the needs of our respective countries so that our citizens can see a way forward without having to resort to desperate measures for a better life.

Relocate the vulnerable

The past week has brought hardship to parts of Jamaica. We were spared for the most part by Tropical Storm Rafael which later became a hurricane and lashed Cuba.

It was tragic that two people perished while driving through the raging water in Worthy Park, St Catherine. Never underestimate the power of water — even a lower level moving rapidly can be extremely dangerous. Residents in parts of Westmoreland and St Thomas were still suffering from flooding and the Bog Walk road was blocked by huge boulders up to the end of the week.

So let me ask our political representatives on both sides. Does it serve you or your constituents to ignore flooding history?

There are hundreds of acres of unoccupied land in safer areas and an urgent plan must be developed to relocate vulnerable citizens. When this is done there will be no need to keep watching the suffering of our citizens.

Jamaica’s Living Legends

We gathered last Sunday to celebrate the inspiring lives of six Jamaicans at the annual CCRP Living Legacy Awards event. The citations for Marva Bernard, Dr Lucien Jones, Hermine Metcalfe, Dr Pauline Milbourn, Justice Seymour Panton, and Kumar Sujanani spoke of their tireless work and dedication to their people.

Netball legend Bernard could have enjoyed a quiet life as an accomplished chartered accountant with Air Jamaica, where she led their netball team. During her nine-year tenure as president of the Jamaica Netball Association, Bernard revolutionised the sport in Jamaica. She prioritised raising the sport’s profile and building infrastructure, culminating in the acquisition of Netball House, the first permanent headquarters for Netball Jamaica.

She also oversaw the formal incorporation of Netball Jamaica, ensuring a solid organisational foundation. Under her guidance, Jamaica’s Sunshine Girls have shone internationally. Bernard has returned to her alma mater to coach their winning netball team.

The recipient of the Michael Fraser Award for Philanthropy, Dr Lucien Jones lives out his Christian faith by serving not only his patients in Clarendon but also volunteering to assist those in Majesty Gardens over the past 50 years, a programme of his beloved St Andrew Parish Church.

The vice-chair of the National Road Safety Council, he has been working to reduce the tragic deaths on our roads, always available to make his voice heard, night or day, on the news. A former president of the Medical Association of Jamaica, Dr Jones has shown unwavering dedication to uplifting the less fortunate and advocating for policies that protect the most vulnerable.

Hermine Metcalfe is a former University of Technology, Jamaica, lecturer; advisor, planner of Jamaica’s polio vaccination project; past chair of the Jamaica Pharmacy Council; distinguished president of the Kiwanis Club of Kingston; and chair of the St Patrick’s Foundation in Seaview Gardens and of her alma mater Convent of Mercy Academy “Alpha”.

Her efforts culminated in the creation of Jamaica’s first ‘List of Vital Essential and Necessary Drugs and Medical Sundries for Public Health Institutions’, which remains a cornerstone of the country’s drug procurement policies. She and her husband Clovis serve in various capacities at Stella Maris Roman Catholic Church, and are first responders for their fellow parishioners in need.

The recipient of the Syringa Marshall-Burnett Award for Health, beloved paediatrician Dr Pauline Milbourn has devoted her life to child and adolescent health. Honed by post-doctoral fellowships in the US and experience in the field in Canada, she is a fellow of the American Academy of Paediatrics (FAAP). As the director of child and adolescent mental health at the Ministry of Education, she spearheaded the development of 10 child guidance clinics — a legacy that continues to benefit countless families today.

Moving up the judiciary from his early days as a resident magistrate to his ascension as a puisne judge and judge of the Court of Appeal, Justice Seymour Panton’s presidency of the Court of Appeal in Jamaica solidified his place as a towering figure in the judiciary. His tenure, from 2007 to 2016, was the longest in Jamaican history. He was appointed as a judge of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals and is a devoted a lay preacher in the Methodist Church.

Receiving the J Lester Spaulding Award for business, Kumar Sujanani leads the successful Sundip Limited in Jamaica’s duty-free and tourism retail sector, which operates across 11 locations. He has served as president of the Lions Club of Northeast St Ann, treasurer of the St Ann Crime Stop Committee, and justice of the peace. He has sponsored youth and education programmes throughout his life, the most recent being his equipping the computer lab at Ocho Rios Primary.

What stood out in the replies of the CCRP honourees was their humility, acknowledging the support of parents, spouses, and colleagues.

Zacca now PSOJ Hall-of-Famer

At a sparkling event recently, Sagicor Group CEO Chris Zacca was inducted into the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) Hall of Fame. He is the longest-serving president of the PSOJ, and I have good memories of working on his first campaign for the post, resulting in his surprise defeat of Bill Clarke.

The MIT engineering graduate holds an MBA from the University of Florida and has excelled in top posts at Desnoes and Geddes Limited (now Red Stripe), Caribrake, ATL, and Air Jamaica. Chris was advisor to the prime minister from 2009-2011 and led the private sector vaccine initiative during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Congratulations, Chris, this is so well deserved.

Jean Lowrie-Chin is an author, communications expert, and seniors’ advocate. Send comments to lowriechin@aim.com.