Cadet Force appeals for budget boost
Published:Monday | February 14, 2022 | 12:09 AM
The Jamaica Combined Cadet Force (JCCF) has implored the Government to boost its budget so the organisation can effectively carry out its functions and help steer at-risk youth away from crime.
During its senior command conference at the Caribbean Military Academy in Kingston on Saturday, battalion and regiment commanders responsible for Cadet Force programmes highlighted deficits that were crippling the organisation’s effectiveness. Its budget was reportedly cut by more than 50 per cent.
They made recommendations for wide-ranging investments in efficiency, as well as for national recognition for volunteers.
Colonel Gerald Ford, commanding officer of the Marine/Air Engineer Battalion, pressed the Government on plans to increase the budgetary allocation for equipment.
Zavia Mayne, state minister for national security, who addressed the gathering, said the Government understands the importance of the JCCF and believed that it had a critical role to play in tackling societal issues faced by youths, particularly boys.
Citing budgetary constraints and downward disbursements because of the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Mayne acknowledged that the JCCF only received a fraction of the amount needed to execute its duties.
“The challenges that confront you as a cadet force, we are mindful of. We recognise that this is a force that has been built on a spirit of volunteerism, and words cannot express gratitude for the role and functions that you have played since your inception,” the state minister said.
Lieutenant Colonel Simone Foster, regiment commander for the cadet headquarters, proposed a policy shift for the JCCF to engage in public-private partnerships.
Foster floated the prospect of tax breaks for certain corporate sponsors “so it would not be so burdensome for the Government to advance the funds upfront”.
She also called for JCCF members who have been involved in volunteerism for many years to be duly recognised with national honours and awards.
Mayne told the gathering that the proposals were low-hanging fruits that could be adjusted in short order, in consultation with stakeholders.
Pernell Robinson, of the Southern Regiment, disclosed that seniors in the JCCF have had to subsidise budgetary shortfalls.
“The children in the upper hills of Clarendon were not able to participate in the activities virtually, even in schools, because they did not have connectivity. They did not have money to purchase data. Let us have a budget that can extend to each battalion of the JCCF,” Robinson said.