Rio Grande tragedy revisited

I find it interesting that one year after the incident along the Rio Grande Valley Road in Portland, where 14 people died, that the road has not been fixed to the extent that another vehicle has since fallen into the ditch at the same location.

It is also interesting that the minister of works is having his residence refurbished to the tune of millions of dollars. What a coincidence! To my recollection, the reason stated for the road not being fixed was a lack of money but, because the minister cannot live in squalor, the money was found for his house. I guess the residents of East Portland can die in squalor since they have no choice.

- Ademola Odunfa, ademolaodunfa@hotmail.com, Kingston

No agri imports for Christmas

We saw import permits issued last year by the minister of agriculture who claimed that Jamaica could not meet the demands for the coming holiday seasons for many crops and livestock we produce. Since the country has decided to return to the IMF for funding, and will actually be getting some money, some of it should go towards stopping this trend we saw last year.

Since it's the Jamaican people who will have to work and pay back this money, the minister of agriculture should put the farm workers programme for September 2009 on hold and let those workers going abroad to work on other people's farm, work here in Jamaica, to meet this demand. He would have to hand out some carrots, by giving these producers and farmers, money to match the minimum wage being paid now.

- Donald Hayles, nhayles@rogers.com, Ontario, Canada

Fake pastoral doctorates

The Jamaican media have been plagued with disturbing news regarding pastors and their various misdeeds. Of course, we are aware of rumours of misdeeds growing up in Jamaica and those deeds were always disgraceful. As a matter of fact, the Book of Corinthians warns that these should not be mentioned among believers.

My comments here should not be construed as an attack on the Church, because I am 100 per cent for the Church of Jesus Christ. However, there are numerous pastors abroad and in Jamaica using the title 'Dr', who have never even sat in a classroom lecture nor have even seen the facade of universities from which they claim to have received their postgraduate degrees.

The deception is too widespread and I am fed up with it. University transcripts still make sense. I am sure that if most of these guys are investigated we will understand that they are plain deceivers lacking in knowledge and so much so the Word of God.

- Wayne Murray, wamjam4708@optonline.net