Dr Neville Gallimore, Cabinet member in the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Government of the 1980s, held a consistent line on what he considered to be the truest test of a nation’s moral standing.

That test, he argued, involved the manner in which the very young and old are treated.

In Jamaica’s case, we dare suggest that Dr Gallimore, who represented St Ann South Western for six-consecutive terms between 1967 and the 1990s, never found reason to be satisfied. He died in January 2020 at age 81.

We are reminded of the affable, highly respected Dr Gallimore by the latest of numerous appeals in Parliament and elsewhere for better treatment and protection of Jamaica’s elderly.

Speaking this week in Parliament’s 2026 State of the Constituency Debate, former Cabinet member and Opposition People’s National Party (PNP) legislator Mr Anthony Hylton condemned the continuing requirement for pensioners to prove they are alive.

It involves them having to present to the authorities what’s referred to as a life certificate, every three months, in order to continue receiving their pension
— all too often pitiably small.

Highlighting the situation, Mr Hylton said: “They [pensioners] wait at a bus stop in sun or rain, ride to Cross Roads, then walk to the NIS (National Insurance Scheme) office on Ruthven Road, often after collecting a life certificate at the post office and finding a justice of the peace to sign it.”

“All this to collect, in some cases, as little as $8,000 a month… Why, in 2026, do we still put them through this?”

His proposal for a system of cross-checking by public sector departments which “hold pension rolls” in order to “stop asking the living to prove they are alive”, supported by verification visits, makes sense to us.

As is repeatedly said, the ageing population in Jamaica is growing fast. According to Mr Hylton, the voters’ list for his constituency shows 6,850 people who are now over 65 years old.

Over recent years, a movement to build protections for the elderly under the proposed Elderly Care and Protection Act has advanced significantly. It’s been spurred substantially through bipartisan action in the Senate, strongly supported by civil society groups.

In June last year a special select committee of the Senate tabled its report on the proposed legislation. It includes a raft of suggestions for protection of the elderly following what the
Jamaica Information Service (JIS) described as “months of in-depth deliberations and consultations…”

And, last month, Minister of Labour and Social Security Mr Pearnel Charles, Jr announced that the Government was in the process of identifying a consultant who will be asked to “transform” the Senate committee’s report into “legislation and policy”.

According to the JIS, Mr Charles Jr explained that the approach “will guide us, how do we operate, how do we protect our seniors, and how do we as a Government put in place all of the various things that are required” for a growing number of people over 60 years old expected to reach 448,000 by 2030.

Like much else, the coming of Hurricane Melissa in late October last year with its horrendous consequences is very probably a spanner in the works, delaying progress.

But, as we are constantly reminded from all sides, the elderly shouldn’t be expected to wait.