Oliver Fredrick Clarke

THE GLEANER, THURSDAY, MAY 28, 2020 | www.jamaica-gleaner.com | E10 THE NATION PUBLISHING COMPANY LIMITED ON BEHALF of The Nation Publishing Company Limited, our condolences on the loss of the Honourable Oliver F. Clarke, former Gleaner Company and RJRGleaner Chairman. Many of us here at the Nation Newspaper knew Mr. Clarke personally as he was friend to our company in its formative years. Again, we extend our deepest sympathies to you, his family and his friends during this period of mourning. Condolences THE GOVERNOR GENERAL’S PROGRAMME FOR EXCELLENCE THE GOVERNOR General’s Programme for Excellence wishes to express sincere condolence to The Gleaner Company (Media) Ltd on the passing of your former chairman, the Honourable Oliver Clarke, OJ, JP. Mr Clarke was a pioneer whose visionary insight is part of the reason for the existence of the Governor General’s Achievement Awards (GGAA). His interaction and input in the GGAA has been two-fold: through The Gleaner Company (Media) Ltd and the Jamaica National Group as premier legacy sponsors since inception in 1991, through to its evolution as the Governor General’s Programme for Excellence (GGPE) at present. Mr Clarke’s philanthropy and strong humanitarian impact will continue to rebound through several generations of Jamaicans owing to his contribution to the GGPE and through his myriad other patriotic and entrepreneurial endeavours. The warm, calculated wit attendant to his occasional presence at King’s House will be missed. Lady Allen joins me and the Governor General’s Programme for Excellence team in prayers of comfort for you and your team during this difficult time. Take heart knowing that, “The Lord will not reject forever, for if He causes grief, then He will have compassion according to His abundant loving kindness.” Lamentations 3 vs 31-32. ASSOCIATION OF JAMAICAN NATIONALS IT IS with great sadness that Jamaicans in the global diaspora learnt of the recent passing of the Hon Oliver F. Clarke, OJ. Mr Clarke was truly a visionary in the financial and media world. His accomplishments are well documented, his role with the Jamaica National Group, The Gleaner and The Voice newspapers are truly monumental. Mr Clarke was also a true and long-standing friend of the Jamaican diaspora here in the United Kingdom, and we owe him a debt of gratitude for his support and for championing the cause of our communities. On behalf of the Association of Jamaican Nationals (Birmingham) UK and the wider community, I wish to extend my deepest condolences to his widowMonica, his daughter Maria Alexandra, the entire Clarke family and the Jamaica National and Gleaner/Voice Group. He will be sadly missed, but his legacy will live on and become an inspiration for generations to come. May his soul now and forever rest in eternal peace. DR BEVERLY LINDSAY, OBE, OD, CHAIRMAN Association of Jamaican Nationals (Birmingham) UK INTERNATIONAL SPORTING CONNECTIONS AFTER READING of the passing of Mr Oliver Clarke, I would like to offer my condolences to his surviving family, friends, staff and colleagues at the JN Group. Whenever I met Mr Clarke, he would greet me with “so how are you, cuz?” This was because we share the same family name. I must thank him for supporting my football projects over the years involving the Jamaica national team. I trust his legacy as a true leader and a business genius will live on. May he rest in peace. WINSTON CLARKE INDECOM PLEASE ACCEPT my sincere condolences on the passing of your former chairman, Oliver Clarke. Although I am sure many can speak of longer and more extensive interactionswith Oliver, I, at least, share thehighest appreciation and admiration for his contribution to Jamaica. Oliver Clarke’s service has been in many areas. This letter briefly recalls one of them. When INDECOM started in 2010, I met Oliver as one of the public figures giving of their time, judgement, and energy to the campaign for police accountability and reform. As I recall, he was either a member of the Police Service Commission or board of the Police Civilian Oversight Authority. He clearly recognised that police impunity was, and remains, the troubling human rights issue of Jamaica, impatient for improvement. For many, human rights is a nebulous concept only of importance when their rights are imperilled. I admired Oliver for his keen interest in reforming the police, although he would be unlikely to himself suffer at the hands of police misconduct. In this endeavour, he was forthright and relentlessly spoke truth. I appreciate Oliver’s support for the work of INDECOM and his encouragement to me. He did not need to reach out, but he did. It meant a lot, as the work is often a lonely one. On behalf of the INDECOM family, I join the Clarke family and the Gleaner family in thanksgiving for the life of Oliver Clarke. TERRENCEWILLIAMS