Record-breaker Harding hailed as ‘voice of justice’

Jamaica’s longest-serving Senator, the late Professor Oswald Gaskell Harding, was laid to rest yesterday, following an official funeral at the University Chapel, The University of the West Indies, Mona campus in St Andrew.
Harding, who passed away in late June, was the first person to serve two non-consecutive terms as president of the Senate. He also served as justice minister and attorney general. Several members of Government were among those who gathered to pay tribute to the former senator’s memory.
They included Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Juliet Holness; President of the Senate, Senator Thomas Tavares-Finson; Opposition Senator Donna Scott-Mottley, who represented the Leader of the Opposition; and Member of Parliament for St Catherine South Western, Everald Warmington.
In his tribute, Warmington described Harding as a great Jamaican who was a “voice of reason” and a “voice of justice” in the Jamaica Labour Party. He noted that while many current Government and party members may not know of Harding’s history, he laid the essential groundwork and foundation that directly created opportunities that leaders today are benefiting from.
“Ossie was the longest-serving senator, the longest-serving president of the Senate. He gave his all,” Warmington stated. 
Meanwhile, Junior Chamber International (JCI) Jamaica Senator and Past State President, Linval Freeman, thanked Harding for his contribution to the Kingston chapter of the organisation. He noted that at the time when Harding joined, the JCI stood as Jamaica’s premier organisation providing leadership and development training for young adults between the ages of 18 to 40.
“Many who passed through its ranks went on to become influential business leaders, community builders, and national policymakers,” Freeman pointed out, as he noted that Harding quickly rose through the ranks to become the chapter’s president in 1969. He noted that many of the persons who joined the organisation in later years did so because of the legacy built by Harding.
“He mentored many young members with sincerity and enthusiasm, always encouraging growth and excellence and always with a smile. We will forever remember Senator Ossie for his devotion to JC’s movement and for the gratitude he often expressed for the role JC’s played in shaping his political and professional life,” Freeman added.