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Bustamante’s Spirit Lives On

By: , February 27, 2023
Bustamante’s Spirit Lives On
Photo: Sharon Earle
Chairman of the Hanover Municipal Corporation and Mayor of Lucea, Councillor Sheridan Samuels, addresses the civic ceremony commemorating the 139th anniversary of the birth of National Hero, the Rt. Excellent Sir Alexander Bustamante, which was held at the National Hero’s birthplace in Blenheim, Hanover on Friday (Feb. 24).
Bustamante’s Spirit Lives On
Photo: Sharon Earle
Students of Cacoon Primary School in Hanover pay tribute to National Hero, the Rt. Excellent Sir Alexander Bustamante, in a poem entitled ‘Papa Busta,’ at a civic ceremony commemorating the 139th anniversary of the birth of the National Hero, held at his birthplace at Blenheim, Hanover on Friday, February 24.
Bustamante’s Spirit Lives On
Photo: Sharon Earle
Students of Maryland Primary and Infant School perform their Quadrille dance entry in the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission’s (JCDC) 2022 Festival of the Arts competition, at the civic ceremony commemorating the 139th anniversary of the birth of National Hero, the Rt> Excellent Sir Alexander Bustamante, held at his birthplace at Blenheim, Hanover on Friday, February 24.
Bustamante’s Spirit Lives On
Photo: Sharon Earle
Students of Green Island High School perform an original drama piece entitled ‘Mi Bredda Busta’ at the civic ceremony commemorating the 139th anniversary of the birth of National Hero, the Rt. Excellent Sir Alexander Bustamante, which was held at his birthplace at Blenheim, Hanover on Friday, February 24.
Bustamante’s Spirit Lives On
Photo: Sharon Earle
Minister of State in the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Alando Terrelonge, delivers the main address at the civic ceremony commemorating the 139th anniversary of the birth of National Hero, the Rt. Excellent Sir Alexander Bustamante, which was held at his birthplace at Blenheim, Hanover on Friday, February 24.
Bustamante’s Spirit Lives On
Photo: SHARON EARLE
Floral tributes were paid to National Hero, the Rt. Excellent Sir Alexander Bustamante, at a civic ceremony commemorating the 139th anniversary of his birth, which held at his birthplace at Blenheim, Hanover on Friday, February 24. From left are Justice of the Peace (JP) Lennox Anderson Jackson (representing Custos of Hanover Dr. David Stair); Minister of State in the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Alando Terrelonge; Chairman of the Hanover Municipal Corporation and Mayor of Lucea, Councillor Sheridan Samuels; Member of Parliament for Hanover Western, Tamika Davis; and Assistant General Secretary for the Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU), Collin Virgo.

The Full Story

National Hero, the Rt. Excellent Sir Alexander Bustamante, has been hailed as an exemplary leader, whose legacy lives on in the descendants of those for whom he fought.

Addressing a civic ceremony in Hanover on Friday (Feb. 24) to mark the 139th anniversary of the National Hero’s birth, Minister of State in the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Alando Terrelonge, said that Bustamante remains a symbol of hope for the poor and downtrodden.

“Bustamante’s back bone not only helped us up and strengthened us as a people but is the foundation on which future leaders have governed our great nation,” he noted.

“For me, Busta’s spirit embodies what it means to be Jamaican; to be strong in the face of adversity, to be resilient,” he said.

“Busta’s spirit also says to every single boy and girl born here in Jamaica, that whether you are from a rural district of Blenheim, whether you are from the cities of Kingston or Montego Bay, your rise to fame, your rise to the status of hero depends on how you view, not just yourself, but how you view your fellowman,” the State Minister added.

Chairman of the Hanover Municipal Corporation and Mayor of Lucea,Councillor Sheridan Samuels, in his welcome address at the civic ceremony held at Bustamante’s birthplace in Blenheim, said that the National Hero has taught Jamaica many valuable lessons, one of which was the importance of law and order to successful nation building.

Quoting from Bustamante’s address to the new nation in 1962, he read: “Independence means the opportunity for us to frame our own destiny and the need for us to rely on ourselves in so doing. It does not mean a licence to do as we would like, it means work and law and order”.

Mayor Samuels said that Bustamante’s words “provide food for thought” as the nation deals with a high level of lawlessness.

“I often wonder what Daddy Busta would say if he was here today. He would not be pleased… today gives us an opportunity to reflect on the work of this humble man, this great man, this master thinker; an opportunity to use his legacy as a catalyst for change,” he said.

The civic ceremony, which was staged in its full format for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic, was attended by representatives from the Hanover Municipal Corporation, Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), Jamaica Defence Force (JDF), Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB), Jamaica National Heritage Trust (JNHT), political representatives, members of civil society, students, residents, among others.

It included tributes in song, drama, poetry, and dance by students of Cacoon Primary, Maryland Primary and Infant and Green Island High schools.

In a poem entitled ‘Papa Busta,’ students from Cacoon Primary, where Bustamante received his early education, petitioned for the institution to be renamed and a statue erected on their school grounds in the National Hero’s honour.

Floral tributes to were paid to Bustamante by Justice of the Peace (JP), Lennox Anderson Jackson, representing Custos of Hanover, Dr. David Stair; Mayor Samuels; Member of Parliament for Hanover Western, Tamika Davis; Assistant General Secretary of the Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU), Collin Virgo; and State Minister Terrelonge.

Last Updated: February 27, 2023