Adrian Frater, News Editor

Clayton

WESTERN BUREAU:

Rastafarian Elder Sam Clayton wants Government to send a high-profile delega-tion to Africa to forge economic cooperation with the continent.

Speaking at a recent ceremony to mark the 45th anniversary of the so-called 1963 Coral Gardens Uprising, which resulted in the deaths of several policemen and Rastafarians, Clayton said: "There are many avenues for joint venture with Africa. I would like to see Prime Minister Bruce Golding leading such a mission, because there is so much opportunity out there that could be mutually beneficial."

Untapped potential

Clayton, a member of the renowned musical outfit, the Mystic Revelation of Rastafari, said Jamaica had not fully tapped into the legacy of kinship with countries such as Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia, ties which were developed by figures such as National Hero Marcus Garvey.

"Our leaders have been too soft over the years, and as a consequence, while other countries have been establishing ties with Africa to their benefit, we have not," noted the Rastafarian elder. "I believe the key to job creation and sustainable growth could come through establishing economic ties with the motherland."

In reference to the island's ballooning crime rate and economic malaise, Clayton declared that the nation was suffering from what he termed chronic post-colonial psychometric stress disorder which, he said, had stunted Jamaican's intellect.

Rastafarianism, which was founded in Jamaica in the 1930s, carries strong Afrocentric roots, endowing deity on former Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I.