A Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) soldier stands guard over the scene of a motor-vehicle accident on the Washington Boulevard in St Andrew, in which a JDF Toyota Land Cruiser crashed into a Jamaica Urban Transit Company bus. A JDF captain died in the accident and two other soldiers were seriously injured. The police were unwilling to release the names of the victims, stating that relatives had not yet been notified. According to information released by Police Traffic Headquarters, up to October 2, 240 people had been killed in traffic accidents since the start of the year. Since 2005, almost 1,300 people have died on the nation's roads. - Norman Grindley/Acting Photography Editor
Don't panic, but...
In the wake of the global financial meltdown, Prime Minister Bruce Golding said on Thursday that Jamaica will take a hit and that some critical economic structures will be affected. He made the admission despite Finance Minister Audley Shaw's caution that the country would face minimal impact.
The prime minister, who was speaking at the 40th annual awards banquet of the Jamaica Manufacturers' Association, steered clear from instigating panic.
Vulnerable budget
Golding said the budget was vulnerable as it was predicated on securing US$250 million (J$1.8 billion) from the external market; but the market is currently gasping for life.
Last week, guests at a Gleaner Editors' Forum examined the impact of the meltdown on the Jamaican economy and were in general agreement that Jamaica must be astute in how it dealt with money matters at both the national and personal levels, as uncertainty in the global marketplace sends tremors through some sectors.
Gorgeous again
Sunday's reopening of the Bog Walk gorge - the major corridor linking Jamaica's capital to the north coast - brought massive relief to commuters who have been forced to traverse rugged alternative routes for more than a month. The winding St Catherine thoroughfare was severely damaged during the onslaught of Tropical Storm Gustav in August, reducing stretches of the roadway to rubble. Highway contractors, French company Bouygues Travaux Publics, fixed the road at their expense. The route had been repaired several times recently, but the roadwork was often a mere tourniquet, only to be undone by torrential rainfall and landslides.
Housing fallout
A number of Jamaicans living in the United States have lost their homes after mortgaging properties and investing the money in risky Jamaican alternative investment schemes, several of which have gone bust. Some have since resorted to paying rent, while others have returned home.
Not your role
Joining government's sparring match with Contractor General Greg Christie, Prime Minister Bruce Golding on Tuesday criticised him for his most recent public outcry, but stressed that the watchdog still has his support.
"Yes, yes, I do still have confidence in him," Golding told The Gleaner at Gordon House, less than half an hour after going on the offensive in the chamber of Parliament. Making a statement to the House of Representatives, Golding stopped short of accusing Christie of overstepping his boundaries.
Land snatched
The National Land Agency is refusing to accept blame for what appears to be a growing problem in which properties are being transferred without the knowledge of the owners. The searchlight has been placed on this phenomenon following recent reports of the alleged illegal transfer of a property belonging to Noel Strachan, the chief executive officer of the troubled alternative investment scheme, World Wise Partners.
'Monster' fight looms
Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett has rolled out a number of initiatives on the back of the formation of a task force to tackle the potential crisis. He was speaking at a Spanish-Jamaican Foundation press conference at the Iberostar Hotel in Montego Bay on Friday. Calling the downturn "a monster", he said he would be going to London on November 12, where he would meet with Spanish partners, with a view to shaping the way forward.
