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  • Tank-Weld gets green light for judicial review of FTC finding

    Tank-Weld gets green light for judicial review of FTC finding

    In a landmark legal ruling delivered on Tuesday, an acting justice of Jamaica’s Supreme Court has granted Tank-Weld Metals Limited the green light to pursue a full judicial review challenge against a key decision made by the nation’s Fair Trading Commission (FTC). The contested decision saw the FTC approve and adopt an August 2025 staff report that originated with Tank-Weld’s industry rival, Arc Manufacturing, which accuses the company of unfair pricing practices in the local market for steel reinforcing bars, commonly referred to as rebar, a critical construction material.

    Acting Supreme Court Justice Sharon Millwood-Moore issued a series of preliminary rulings following an initial hearing on Tank-Weld’s application for both judicial review and injunctive relief. Among the court’s grants are approval for the company to seek an Order of Certiorari, a legal mechanism that would quash the FTC’s decision to accept the competitor-initiated staff report. The court also approved a request for an Order of Prohibition, which would bar the FTC from publishing or taking any further action based on two formal letters dated March 23, 2026, sent to Tank-Weld’s legal team at Hart Muirhead Fatta that confirmed the commission’s acceptance of the report.

    Beyond these measures, the court has granted Tank-Weld leave to pursue an Order of Mandamus that would compel the FTC to fully withdraw both the contested staff report and its decision to endorse the document. The company is also cleared to seek a court order requiring the removal of the report and associated FTC decision from all public and private electronic platforms where the materials may have been posted. Additionally, the court approved the pursuit of a separate Order of Mandamus to force the FTC to conduct a full new investigation that adheres to the procedural requirements laid out in Jamaica’s Fair Competition Act and broader principles of administrative law.

    One key protective measure granted by the court is an order that seals both the FTC’s preliminary investigation report and the contested August 2025 staff report, with the ruling stipulating that neither document can be unsealed without explicit authorization from the court. Justice Millwood-Moore also set out clear procedural timelines for the next steps in the case: the full judicial review application must be filed and served on all relevant parties within 14 days of Tuesday’s order, and any pending applications related to the transfer of the case are scheduled for a hearing on April 23, 2026, a date previously set by Jamaica’s Commercial Court.

    This latest ruling builds on an earlier stay issued by the Supreme Court’s commercial division on April 2 of this year, which paused all enforcement action connected to the FTC’s investigation into the pricing allegations from Arc Manufacturing. That earlier order explicitly stated that the FTC’s March 2026 decision could not remain in effect or be acted upon until a full inter partes hearing is held or the court issues a new order.

    In a public statement released following Tuesday’s ruling, Tank-Weld framed the court’s decision as a critical win not just for the company, but for Jamaican consumers and construction stakeholders. The company noted that the ruling provides immediate protection for ordinary Jamaican households, independent builders, and contracting firms from the sudden risk of spiking construction costs. Tank-Weld emphasized that it has operated in the Jamaican market for 35 years, maintaining accessible pricing for rebar and other core construction materials in an entirely open market that allows duty-free rebar imports from any country around the globe, a market structure that the company argues makes sustained anti-competitive high pricing impossible.

  • Jamaica and UK strengthen partnership on digital records, information management

    Jamaica and UK strengthen partnership on digital records, information management

    In Kingston, Jamaica, a landmark two-day professional development initiative focused on modern records and digital preservation has concluded successfully, brought to life through a cross-border partnership between the UK Government, Jamaica’s Archives and Records Department (JARD) – a division of the country’s Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information – and the United Kingdom’s National Archives (TNA).

    The gathering drew a diverse cohort of archival and public sector stakeholders from across Jamaica, alongside a group of archival professionals from multiple neighboring Caribbean island nations. Over the two-day program, experts from TNA led interactive training sessions covering critical modern archival topics: cutting-edge best practices for digital asset preservation, robust cybersecurity protocols for archival collections, specialized strategies for conserving audiovisual heritage, and robust frameworks for protecting national records amid the growing complexity of a globally connected digital landscape.

    This collaborative project represents a meaningful milestone in advancing Jamaica’s ongoing work to build a more secure, transparent, and resilient national information management system. By upgrading archival infrastructure and expertise, the initiative ensures that Jamaica’s invaluable institutional memory – the collective documentation of the nation’s governance, history, and identity – will be safeguarded for both current communities and future generations.

    A core objective of the workshop was to strengthen public sector governance by upgrading standards for records and information management. Program leaders emphasized that protecting national archival collections is a shared responsibility across government institutions, one that must balance rigorous protection of document integrity with equitable public access to historical and official information. Through structured knowledge sharing between UK and Jamaican archival experts, participants worked through hands-on exercises to test practical tools and develop targeted strategies to address the rapidly evolving challenges that digital transformation has created for the archival sector.

    The training program was delivered during a working visit to Jamaica by a team of TNA specialists including Juliette Desplat, Alexander Forbes, and Stephen Daly, who joined Alicia Herbert, the British High Commissioner to Jamaica, for the official opening of the seminar.

    In her opening remarks, High Commissioner Herbert stressed the foundational value of this bilateral partnership and the critical importance of responsible information stewardship in the 21st century. “This partnership reflects the very spirit of what we are here to discuss: connection, cooperation, and the responsible stewardship of information in an increasingly digital age,” Herbert explained. “The way we manage, protect, and use records speaks directly to the integrity of our institutions, the trust of our citizens, and the resilience of our societies. Records management is no longer a back-office function – it is central to governance, security, and accountability.”

    Meanwhile, Dr. Dana Morris Dixon, Jamaica’s Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, framed the work of archival preservation as a matter of urgent national importance, particularly in light of the increasing frequency of climate-fueled natural disasters that threaten physical and digital documentary collections across the Caribbean. “The preservation of our records is, in a very real sense, about preserving our history. Without our history, we cannot tell our story. This work is not administrative busy work – it is important national work. Strengthening how we preserve our records ensures that Jamaica’s story, identity, and institutional memory are protected for generations to come,” Dr. Dixon noted.

    Juliette Desplat, a senior expert from TNA, drew attention to a little-discussed but growing threat facing archival institutions worldwide: the accelerating erosion of digital heritage. “We are faced with a silent crisis – the fragility of our digital heritage,” Desplat explained. “Without deliberate preservation, vital information risks being lost to time. Greater collaboration allows us to respond to these challenges and ensure that archives remain essential resources for democracy and future generations.”

    By the close of the seminar, participants and organizers reaffirmed that the program has reinforced the long-standing value of UK-Jamaica bilateral cooperation. The partnership advances shared goals of stronger governance, greater climate and digital resilience for national institutions, and the permanent preservation of both shared Caribbean-British and individual national histories for future generations.

  • Cedricka Williams breaks Tennessee discus record

    Cedricka Williams breaks Tennessee discus record

    A wave of standout performances from Caribbean-born collegiate track and field athletes competing across the United States this weekend delivered historic milestones, long-standing record breaks, and career-best results that have turned heads across the NCAA circuit.

    In Knoxville, Jamaican thrower Cedricka Williams of the University of Tennessee etched her name into the program’s history books at the annual Tennessee Invite on Friday. Claiming victory in the women’s discus event, Williams landed a 60.57-meter throw – a new personal season’s best – that pushed her past a nearly half-century-old school record. The previous mark of 60.56m had stood untouched since it was set by Jane Haist back in 1974, 49 years prior. Williams hit her record-breaking launch in the second round of competition, and her result currently ranks as the second-best discus throw posted by any NCAA athlete so far this outdoor season. A former standout at Jamaica’s Holmwood Technical and Barton County College, Williams’ breakthrough has cemented her status as one of the top throwers in collegiate track this year.

    Down in Waco at the Baylor Invitational, two Louisiana State University athletes put up strong results in the women’s 200-meter dash. Freshman sprinter Skyler Franklin clocked a new program freshman record of 22.99 seconds with a 0.7m/s tailwind to claim third place overall, while fellow LSU competitor Kemba Nelson finished sixth with a time of 23.28 seconds into a 1.7m/s wind.

    Over in Tampa at the South Florida Invitational, Zachary Cox, a former ISSA Champs finalist from Jamaica’s Cornwall College now competing with Boston University, notched two new outdoor personal bests in just his second collegiate outdoor meet. Cox first took fifth place in the men’s 100-meter dash with a 10.36-second run (1.2m/s wind), which marks the second-fastest 100m time in Boston University program history. Shortly after competing on BU’s second-place 4x100m relay team that finished in 40.49 seconds, Cox returned to the track to win the men’s 200m with a 20.98-second run (1.4m/s wind). That result shaved 0.08 seconds off his previous personal best and now ranks as the ninth-fastest 200m in Boston University history.

    At Dartmouth College, former Jamaica College Champs gold medalist J’Voughn Blake notched a solid second-place finish in the men’s 800-meter run, crossing the line in a season-best 1 minute 48.54 seconds. The race marked only Blake’s second competitive outing in nearly a year, after he last competed at the NCAA East Regional in late May of 2023.

    Rounding out the weekend of Caribbean success, Fabrienne Foster of the University of North Texas set two new personal bests at the 44 Farms Invitational hosted by Texas A&M University. Foster placed seventh in the women’s hammer throw with a 51.84m toss, and followed that up with an eighth-place finish in the discus throw, hitting a personal best 48.87m.

  • Justice system buckling under poor infrastructure, says Court of Appeal president

    Justice system buckling under poor infrastructure, says Court of Appeal president

    Jamaica’s most senior judicial officials have issued a blunt, public call for comprehensive modernization of the country’s crumbling courthouses, warning that outdated infrastructure is crippling the delivery of justice and holding back a new generation of legal professionals.

    Appeals Court President Marva McDonald-Bishop laid out the case for reform during a swearing-in ceremony for eight newly elevated senior judicial officers at King’s House on Thursday, using a well-known biblical metaphor to frame the crisis. Drawing from Matthew 9:17 — the passage that states new wine cannot be poured into old, inflexible wineskins without both being ruined — she argued the metaphor perfectly describes Jamaica’s current justice system.

    “New transformative ideas cannot survive in rigid, outdated structures without intentional renewal,” McDonald-Bishop told the assembled crowd. “These newly appointed judges are that new wine, full of fresh energy and perspective — but the question remains: are they being placed into new, fit-for-purpose wineskins, or crumbling old ones?”

    She went on to detail a long list of critical deficiencies across Jamaican courthouses that are stifling the productivity of the country’s legal professionals, from outdated architectural and operational designs ill-suited to modern justice delivery to inadequate, unsafe spaces for crime victims and witnesses. Even basic accommodations for jurors are lacking, she noted, with no dedicated, comfortable facilities for jurors to deliberate on cases, on top of longstanding issues with unpaid juror stipends. Most notably, the country’s push to expand virtual court hearings to increase access to justice has been held back by a near-total lack of upgraded digital and technological infrastructure across courthouses.

    McDonald-Bishop specifically called out the downtown Kingston Court of Appeal building, which may appear renovated and well-maintained from the street, but hides serious internal flaws that create daily disruptions and safety risks. “It looks new on the outside, but it’s crumbling from within,” she said. “Sewage is actively seeping into the building, affecting our work every single day. Homeless individuals camping near the entrance create major security concerns, as do unregulated taxi operators who park directly on the court steps and street vendors who set up stalls along the perimeter.”

    She stressed that as the world becomes increasingly digital and globalized, Jamaica’s legal community must be given functional, modern workspaces to evolve with changing global norms. Echoing the biblical metaphor, she added that inflexible, outdated structures cannot adapt to new pressures and will ultimately block systemic change. McDonald-Bishop joined Chief Justice Bryan Sykes in formally calling on national government leaders to prioritize the justice system’s infrastructure needs.

    Sykes, who also addressed the swearing-in ceremony, backed up McDonald-Bishop’s concerns with a firsthand account of government inaction following last year’s Hurricane Melissa. The Category 5 storm made landfall in Jamaica in October 2024, causing widespread damage to multiple courthouses across the island, including the main court facility in Savanna-la-Mar, Westmoreland.

    Sykes explained that shortly after the storm, judicial leadership met with Ministry of Justice officials to request either major renovations or full reconstruction of the damaged Savanna-la-Mar court. Five months on, however, he said the government has not issued any formal response or indication that it plans to move forward with the work.

    “Can you believe that five months after a Category 5 hurricane, nothing has been done to restore or replace the main court in Savanna-la-Mar? If a storm of that scale can’t spur urgent action, what reason is there to believe anything will ever get done?” Sykes asked.

    To address the gap left by government inaction, Sykes announced that the judiciary has reallocated funds from its own existing budget to carry out critical repairs at multiple court facilities across western Jamaica. The judiciary has already completed upgrades to the circuit court in Westmoreland and the family court in Trelawny, ensuring local judicial officers have safe, functional workspaces.

    Sykes used the stalled Savanna-la-Mar project to make the case for broader institutional reform, arguing that the judiciary should be given greater direct control over infrastructure resources. “This is a simple division of labor: let the government build the facilities, then hand them over to the judiciary to maintain. As Hurricane Melissa has made clear, government ministries have proven to be unreliable partners in this critical work,” he said.

  • WPM working to contain smoke at Retirement Disposal site by Friday afternoon

    WPM working to contain smoke at Retirement Disposal site by Friday afternoon

    ST JAMES, Jamaica — Western Parks and Markets (WPM), the regional operating division of Jamaica’s National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), has announced that it expects to fully eliminate persistent smoke plaguing the Retirement Disposal Site by late Friday. The incident began a week prior, when reports of an underground fire broke out at the landfill last Saturday, triggering thick smoke that drifted across multiple residential communities in the Montego Bay area. While the open flames of the fire were brought under control within days, the smoldering debris has continued to emit problematic smoke that has disrupted daily life for local residents for nearly a week.

    Speaking to local outlet Jamaica Observer Friday morning, WPM Regional Manager Dramaine Jones shared that overnight and Thursday rainfall had already dampened the last remaining active flames and reduced the volume of smoke emanating from the site. Still, he confirmed that the agency’s top priority is full elimination of the smoke nuisance by the end of Friday afternoon. Jones first laid out this timeline during a regular monthly council meeting of the St James Municipal Corporation Thursday, where he noted that containment would depend on favorable weather conditions. He told attendees Thursday that a lack of additional heavy rain would allow combined teams from WPM and the local fire department to access the affected areas fully, clearing all smoke by the close of the day.

    Jones clarified that the affected areas are two zones designated for storing construction and landscape debris collected through the NSWMA’s Debris Management Programme, plus oversized bulky waste collected from across the region. He also outlined the key challenges that have extended the cleanup and containment operation far longer than initially expected. Two consecutive afternoons of heavy rain created a dual-edged problem for response teams: while the precipitation helped extinguish open flames and dampen smoldering debris, it also left the entire work area waterlogged and extremely soft. This soggy terrain left heavy response vehicles frequently stuck when attempting to reach the center of the affected zone, slowing progress dramatically.

    To adapt to these conditions, Jones explained, WPM has adjusted its operational workflow to start work each day much earlier than usual. By starting at first light, crews can take full advantage of dry, warm daylight hours to move equipment and treat the affected areas before afternoon rains typically arrive. This shift has already yielded visible progress, Jones said, reducing the impact of smoke on nearby communities. As of Friday, crews have worked through roughly 35 to 45 percent of the one-acre affected area, and overall smoke output has dropped to an estimated 25 percent of the levels seen at the peak of the incident.

    Looking ahead, Jones confirmed that the long-term solution for the site will follow the agency’s original pre-fire plan: the entire affected area has already been graded and flattened during preparation for capping, and once the smoldering is fully extinguished, crews will simply apply a protective covering material to seal the site and prevent any future smoke or fire issues.

  • Falmouth mayor warns of disorder as ‘land grabbing’ increases

    Falmouth mayor warns of disorder as ‘land grabbing’ increases

    FALMOUTH, Trelawny — As large-scale development accelerates across Jamaica’s Trelawny parish, the local municipal government is sounding the alarm over a growing wave of illegal land encroachment and fraudulent property reselling that threatens to upend orderly growth in the region. At the regular monthly gathering of the Trelawny Municipal Corporation (TMC) held Thursday, Falmouth Mayor and Councillor C Junior Gager issued a sharp public warning, urging all landowners across the parish to step up vigilance against bad actors illegally seizing and subdividing private property for profit.

    Gager told attendees that the TMC has received multiple formal complaints about land grabbing incidents across different communities in Trelawny, including the district of Scarlet Hall, where schemers have repeatedly targeted unmonitored private land. He explained that these illegal activities often fly under the radar of municipal authorities until the encroachment has already advanced significantly, leaving rightful owners and regulators scrambling to address the damage.

    “Right now, we are seeing repeated cases where unscrupulous individuals enter private land, carry out unofficial surveys, and lay claim to property that does not belong to them,” Gager said during the meeting. “More often than not, our officers only find out about these illegal subdivisions long after the work has been done.”

    The mayor stressed that without immediate action from landowners and stronger oversight, Trelawny risks sliding into widespread disorganization as illegal squatting and unregulated development spreads. He urged both large and small landholders to implement routine checks of their holdings to catch encroachment early.

    “I am appealing to large landowners to assign someone to patrol your property at least once a month; take a drive around your land and check for any unauthorized activity,” Gager said. “Small landowners need to do the same – you cannot afford to ignore what is happening on your own land.”

    Gager warned that unregulated illegal development creates unsafe, unplanned communities that lack proper infrastructure: without formal roads, the areas cannot be effectively patrolled by police, and emergency services cannot access properties in crisis. He added that even landowners will face official action when illegal construction is discovered, noting “when our team goes to serve eviction notices on these illegal structures, we also have to notify the legal landowner, because as the title holder, you have a responsibility to monitor your property. We cannot allow Trelawny to become a parish defined by chaos and squatting.”

    To illustrate how brazen these land-grabbing schemes have become, Gager shared details of a recent high-profile incident in Scarlet Hall, where a large landowner discovered that a man from St Catherine had started clearing his property for illegal subdivision. In that case, the encroacher exploited a single year of missed property tax payment by the rightful owner: the schemer paid the outstanding one-year tax bill, then tried to use the receipt as fraudulent proof of ownership to claim the entire parcel of prime real estate.

    “To show you how cunning these people are, a large landowner – who we are not identifying – got word that heavy equipment was on his property clearing land,” Gager explained. “He blocked the access road and went to investigate, and found an excavator clearing his prime land to be split up and sold illegally. The rightful owner had paid his taxes consistently for years, but missed payment for just one year. That was all the window the schemer needed – they paid that single year’s tax, and claimed that gave them full right to the land. They planned to subdivide it, make a huge profit, then disappear.”

    Under Jamaican law, individuals can legally claim ownership of a property through adverse possession if they occupy the land without challenge for at least 12 consecutive years. Gager noted that simple preventative steps, such as putting up clearly visible “no trespassing” signs, can block these claims and protect a landowner’s title.

    Beyond warning current landowners, Gager also urged prospective property buyers to carry out full due diligence before completing any land purchase, noting that buying fraudulently listed land can lead to total loss of investment.

    “If you cut corners on verifying ownership, you stand to lose not just the land, but every dollar you put into building a home or developing the property,” he said. “I hope people will take this warning seriously. Stay vigilant.”

    The mayor also warned buyers to be deeply suspicious of deals that seem too good to be true, calling these obvious fraudulent schemes run by organized criminal actors. “There is no seafront land in Trelawny selling for $600,000 per lot – everyone knows that cannot be real. These are criminals running sophisticated scams. When you see a seafront lot that looks like a steal, and you hand over your hard-earned $600,000 as full payment, you are walking straight into a trap that will leave you with nothing,” he added.

  • Michael Jackson fans swarm Berlin for biopic premiere

    Michael Jackson fans swarm Berlin for biopic premiere

    BERLIN, Germany — Thousands of devoted fans of the late “King of Pop” Michael Jackson flocked to the German capital on Friday for an early premiere screening of the new biopic *Michael*, with longstanding child sexual abuse allegations against the star failing to dampen their enthusiasm for the project.

    The upcoming feature, which casts Jackson’s own nephew Jaafar Jackson in the lead role, is projected by its production team to become one of the highest-grossing musical biopics ever released worldwide. Only around 4,000 lucky attendees secured access to the Friday evening screening, with tickets distributed exclusively through prize draws two weeks ahead of the film’s official global theatrical launch. For fans who did not win entry, organizers have planned a full weekend of Jackson-themed events, including public panel discussions with the film’s production crew, a career-spanning exhibition celebrating the singer’s life and work, and multiple themed fan parties.

    Jackson, who died at 50 in 2009 from an accidental overdose of the anesthetic propofol, faced repeated child sexual abuse allegations throughout his later career. While he was acquitted of all criminal charges in a 2005 molestation trial, he never successfully repaired his public image during his lifetime. Since his death, additional accusers have filed civil lawsuits against the star’s estate, with several legal proceedings still active as of the premiere. No criminal or civil court has ever issued a guilty verdict against Jackson related to these allegations.

    According to industry outlet *Variety*, which cited anonymous sources familiar with the production, the film was originally developed to examine how the abuse allegations shaped Jackson’s personal life and career. However, producers were forced to cut roughly one-third of the finished project after legal representatives for the Jackson estate identified a contractual clause in a past settlement with one of the accusers that barred any mention of that individual in the film. The extensive rewrites and reshoots required to comply with the clause pushed the film’s global release date from its originally scheduled April 18, 2025 launch to an undetermined future date.

    Many fans in attendance at the Berlin premiere emphasized their continued support for Jackson’s legacy, dismissing the allegations as unsubstantiated. Andy Escobar, a 31-year-old aircraft mechanic who traveled from the United States for the event, shared that his childhood nickname was “MJ” because of his lifelong fandom. When asked about the allegations, Escobar stated simply, “We know that’s not true.” Megane Kittler, a 31-year-old educator based in Berlin who originally hails from France, echoed that sentiment, pointing to Jackson’s 2005 acquittal as proof of his innocence.

    Distributor Lionsgate is projecting the biopic will earn $700 million in global box office revenue. If the projection holds, *Michael* will become the second-highest grossing musical biopic of all time, outranking nearly all competitors but falling short of 2018’s *Bohemian Rhapsody*, the Freddie Mercury-focused biopic that earned $910 million worldwide.

  • Illegal signs come down as KSAMC launches enforcement drive

    Illegal signs come down as KSAMC launches enforcement drive

    The Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) has formally launched its long-announced enforcement campaign, initiating the removal of unapproved outdoor signage and billboards across the municipality, following a three-month compliance grace period that drew low levels of participation from regulated entities.\n\nMayor of Kingston Andrew Swaby confirmed that the operation is not a temporary, one-off initiative, and crews have already begun taking down non-compliant signage across multiple districts of Kingston’s Corporate Area starting Thursday. Swaby emphasized that the enforcement drive will continue systematically until all unauthorised displays are addressed.\n\nPublic outreach on signage compliance requirements has been underway since the start of the calendar year, Swaby explained. Municipal authorities distributed formal notification letters, held one-on-one consultations with signage owners, engaged industry umbrella groups, and ran public awareness announcements on local radio. The public education and compliance window was originally scheduled to close on March 31, and enforcement was only slightly delayed to allow teams to complete final verification of permit and payment records.\n\nUnder the rules, any publicly displayed signage — regardless of whether it is placed on private property, commercial plazas, or public road right-of-ways — is required to obtain formal approval from the KSAMC. Any display that has not gone through the application and approval process will be removed as part of the ongoing campaign, Swaby added.\n\nThe three-month grace period launched in January included an incentive for non-compliant entities: a 20% discount on all outstanding signage regulatory fees. The incentive was specifically designed to ease the burden on businesses and public agencies that faced financial hardship after Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica on October 28, 2024. The storm caused widespread operational disruptions, unexpected recovery costs, and shifted operational priorities for many entities, leaving them unable to meet regulatory obligations including signage fee payments.\n\nDespite the accommodative terms, compliance rates remained far below municipal expectations. Of the 3,421 signs audited by KSAMC officials, only 463 owners completed required payments and brought their signage into full compliance during the grace period. Swaby previously voiced frustration over the low turnout at the KSAMC’s monthly meeting on March 12, 2025, noting that while some entities took advantage of the discount, dozens of public and private entities still held outstanding obligations ahead of the grace period deadline.\n\nAt that March meeting, Swaby gave multiple public warnings that enforcement would follow immediately after the grace period closed. He noted that the entire initiative was structured to give entities a fair, low-cost path to regularize their signage status without facing penalties, and the enforcement phase was unavoidable for those that failed to act.\n\nTo carry out the campaign, the KSAMC has assembled a dedicated enforcement team tasked with coordinating all removal actions. The municipality has also reached out to senior leadership of the Area 4 and Area 5 police divisions, as well as local divisional commanders across Kingston and St Andrew, to request police support for the structured enforcement drive where necessary.\n\nWith removal operations now officially underway, Swaby reiterated his call for all property owners and businesses that still hold unapproved signage to complete the permitting and payment process promptly to avoid having their displays removed.

  • Fraser-Pryce announced as Laureus Ambassador

    Fraser-Pryce announced as Laureus Ambassador

    Jamaican sprint icon Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, one of the most decorated track and field athletes in history, has been appointed as a new Global Ambassador for the Laureus Sport for Good movement, the organization confirmed in an official statement.

    Fraser-Pryce, who claimed the 2023 Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year award, brings a decades-long legacy of athletic excellence and community impact to the role, aligning perfectly with Laureus’ core mission to transform young lives through the power of sport. Off the track, the five-time Olympian founded the Pocket Rocket Foundation, a non-profit organization that delivers academic scholarships, one-on-one mentorship, and targeted support to emerging Jamaican student-athletes facing barriers to opportunity.

    In its announcement, Laureus emphasized that Fraser-Pryce’s lifelong commitment to lifting up her local community through sport directly mirrors the organization’s foundational goals, a shared values alignment that has drawn hundreds of top global athletes to join the Laureus Ambassador network in recent years.

    Fraser-Pryce’s first official assignment in her new post will be a public appearance at the 2026 Laureus World Sports Awards, scheduled to take place in Madrid on April 20. The appearance will mark her return to the iconic Laureus red carpet, six years after her first nomination for the World Sportswoman of the Year award – a honor she went on to win in 2023, capping a career that includes six total nominations for the award.

    The 2026 Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year shortlist features three standout stars from the 2025 World Athletics Championships: Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, who swept gold in the women’s 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay; Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, who clocked the second-fastest 400m time in human history to claim gold; and Faith Kipyegon, who secured her fourth consecutive world title in the 1500m event.

    Speaking on her new appointment, Fraser-Pryce noted that Laureus has long been a key part of her professional journey, and that she is deeply honored to step into the ambassador role. “This moment reflects a continued commitment to the sport and to the athletes coming behind me,” she said. “My experience has given me a deep understanding of both the opportunities and challenges athletes face today, and I’m passionate about using that perspective to guide, uplift, and empower the next generation to rise to even greater heights.”

    Sebastian Coe, a member of the Laureus World Sports Academy and president of World Athletics, praised Fraser-Pryce’s addition to the network, calling her one of the most dominant and enduring athletes in modern sports. “For nearly 20 years she set extraordinary standards on the track, not only through her unmatched performances but through the grace and resilience she brings to everything she does,” Coe explained. “Her commitment to education and expanding opportunity for young people – in particular in her home country of Jamaica – is deeply aligned with the values of Laureus. We are delighted to welcome her as a Laureus Ambassador and I know she will play a huge role in helping Laureus continue its mission of improving young lives through the power of sport.”

    Over a 20-year elite career, Fraser-Pryce has claimed three Olympic gold medals and 10 World Championship titles, making her the most globally decorated sprinter in the history of track and field. One of her most iconic achievements came at the 2022 World Athletics Championships, where she won the 100m gold after becoming a mother in 2019, breaking records to become the oldest athlete ever to claim a global sprint title. She has inspired millions of sports fans across the world with her longevity, skill, and consistent commitment to giving back.

    Fraser-Pryce joins a global roster of more than 200 Laureus Ambassadors, all elite athletes who volunteer their platforms, voices, and passion to advance the Laureus Sport for Good mission. Since the 2025 Laureus World Sports Awards, other high-profile athletes to join the volunteer ambassador network include freestyle skier Eileen Gu, football stars Jude Bellingham and Thiago Alcântara, and gymnastics legend Simone Biles.

  • Row deepens over shelter sex allegations

    Row deepens over shelter sex allegations

    A public dispute over child protection obligations has erupted between the head of Jamaica’s largest teachers’ union and the nation’s education minister, centered on unconfirmed allegations of inappropriate sexual activity by disaster shelter residents that was allegedly visible to students on school grounds.