Perceptive readers might recall that on October 2, 2025, in an editorial titled ‘Dr Dayton Campbell, politics aside, has a story worth celebrating’, the Jamaica Observer gave the People’s National Party (PNP) general secretary his due.

“Taking politics out of the equation, as well as the famous love-hate relationship that Jamaicans have with their politicians, Dr Dayton Campbell… has a human story that is worth telling,” we wrote.

“At first glance, Dr Campbell could appear arrogant and a man of bluster, but stripped down to his naked humanity he exposes a side of himself that might endear him to those who feel for the struggles of other people… If Dr Campbell can bring his better side to politics, then Jamaica will be well served.”

One can therefore understand our deep disappointment that it is the same Dr Campbell who has been forced to settle a defamation lawsuit by fellow Member of Parliament Mr Daryl Vaz, who was once again battling to rescue his reputation from rumour-mongers.

But it is an issue which goes well beyond the PNP politico.

There are few things many Jamaicans love more than a juicy piece of rumour, no matter how baseless or cruel. And they do not wish to be confounded by the truth, often arguing that, “If it no go so, it nearly go so.”

If uttered from a political stage, such rumours can gather wings rapidly, taken far and wide by people who either accept them, ignorantly, to be fact, never stopping long enough to care about how their loved ones or associates are impacted.

Sometimes all a man or woman has is his or her reputation; the only currency of real value on which they can build respect and trustworthiness as someone of upstanding character. Destroy that and you leave them worthless, with nothing but an empty shell from which many never recover.

In this respect, we view Mr Vaz as an outstanding example of one who has borne the brunt of an evil rumour that has stubbornly spanned four decades. How he has managed to withstand the slings and arrows and yet succeed as a politician and businessman is almost unfathomable.

Perhaps we can learn something from his own words that could prove cathartic to those who have undergone similar experiences:

“I have tried over the last several years to prove who the real Daryl Vaz is, as a result of all the rumours, innuendoes, and propaganda that have been spread about me. For 27 years it has been used against me, thankfully unsuccessfully, to assassinate my character. It has been used in all of my elections, internal and otherwise.

“I have never responded to it, simply because nothing I can say will make a difference to those cowards who wish to perpetrate these baseless, slanderous rumours. I cannot be my own defender in this matter, but I am happy and relieved that this rumour has been independently responded to by credible persons.

“I have had no choice as a young man but to use this adversity to strengthen me and my family, to overcome this cruelty of human nature, and I have done so. A lesser man than me would be in either the mad house or the crack house, but in life I turn adversity into opportunity.

“I cannot think of any successful national figure in Jamaica who has not had to sustain and undergo some of the most terrible rumours and innuendos. As one who has suffered more than most, I appeal to our nation not to indulge in this unkindness which can destroy people’s lives.”