Oliver Clarke passes away at 75
(Jamaica Gleaner) Oliver Frederick Clarke, a quintessential media tycoon, Caribbean luminary, humanitarian and banker who had an almost inexhaustible list of accolades, died Saturday at his home at 9:45 p.m. after a battle with cancer. He was 75.
Arguably one of the most influential and renowned media magnates across the English-speaking Caribbean, Clarke managed and chaired the 185-year-old Gleaner Company for four decades, having served as managing director from 1976-2011 and chairman of the media giant (and later 1834 Investments Limited) since 1979.
A central figure in corporate Jamaica, Clarke played a pivotal role in the establishment of the powerful Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) in 1976 and was later immortalised among its esteemed leadership over the years when he was inducted into the organisation’s Hall of Fame in 1996.
Clarke’s rise to the leadership of the private-sector body came at a time when the then Michael Manley administration of the 1970s embarked on a programme of radical economic and social transformation to achieve a more equitable distribution of the society’s wealth.
Deep divisions emerged within the society when the Government sought to nationalise the ‘commanding heights’ of the economy and began pursuing an independent foreign policy, including relationships with communist countries.
Clarke was among the leaders of corporate Jamaica at the time who perceived the economic policy of the Government as a threat to private enterprise. He took the lead in the course of action that led to the coming together of the private-sector associations, companies, and individuals to establish the PSOJ. His continued leadership role in the PSOJ’s programme to protect the interest of the private sector led to his election as president of the organisation he had helped to found.
In the latter part of the 1970s, the relationship between the Government and The Gleaner became strained. It further deteriorated when Manley, the then prime minister, led a march on the newspaper on September 25, 1979, protesting what he regarded as unfair journalism against his administration. The march ended with a warning from Manley: “Next time! Next time!”
Clarke regarded the prime minister’s action as “bringing pressure on The Gleaner to influence editorial policy or, indeed, to close the company”, and launched a campaign to protect the free press which he regarded as a critical pillar of democracy. In this campaign, the newspaper boss recalls that The Gleaner’s “membership of the Inter-American Press Association and of the Commonwealth Press Association stood us in good ground”. He maintained a dominant presence in both international press organisations and was eventually elected president of The Inter American Press Association.
Well respected and instrumental in public life, Clarke was appointed by the Patterson administration in early 2000 to chair a parliamentary salaries review committee to review the pay received by parliamentarians and to make recommendations. The committee recommended that there should be no increase in the current base pay for members of parliament (MPs).