Headlines:
| PNP rhetoric escalates |
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| Monday, 21 July 2008 | |
As battle lines become more defined in the Presidential
race between People's National Party (PNP) President Portia Simpson Miller and
challenger Dr. Peter Phillips, Central Westmoreland Member of Parliament Roger
Clarke has come to the defence of the PNP leader.Speaking at the PNP's Toll Gate Divisional conference in South West Clarendon Sunday evening, Mr. Clarke expressed outrage that some members of the PNP would want to unseat Mrs Simpson Miller in order to hand over leadership to Dr Peter Phillips. "During the election of 2007, everywhere Bruce (Golding) went he brought the whole JLP (Jamaica Labour Party) with him, when Portia was out there at the same time, there were some people who were saying that it's better JLP win but so help me God, we're going to fight them to the crown ... we're not going to let them destroy that woman," said Mr. Clarke. ‘We are one' There were anxious moments at the meeting when PNP Councillor for the York Town Division Uphel Percell declared that he saw nothing wrong with democracy within the party. He said he was solidly behind Dr. Peter Phillips and encouraged the raucous crowd to join him. "You can curse, you can vex ... Peter side can curse, Portia side can vex but the truth of the case is that we have a Portia/Peter boxer in the party and we have to get rid of it and therefore I'm saying to you please reconsider and support my candidate comrade Peter Phillips," said Mr. Percell. The upset crowd shouted to display their displeasure with his pronouncements. Mr. Percell then added, "Comrades, we are one, we are one." Harris re-elected but is mum on who he's backing North Trelawny MP Dr. Patrick Harris on Sunday retained the chairmanship of his constituency. During the last presidential elections Dr. Harris was a supporter of the "Solid as a Rock" camp which won him the ire of "Team Portia" supporters. However, speaking to RJR News following his victory on Sunday Dr. Harris declined to disclose his hand in the upcoming leadership race. "If the time comes and when it comes, our delegates will speak and they've never been wrong ... they understand the issues and I will trust their judgment every time," he said. Trelawny and St. Ann are part of the PNP's Region One. North Trelawny has the largest number of votes in that bloc and will factor significantly in the September PNP leadership elections. In South West St Elizabeth, Donald Buchanan's son Hugh Buchanan came out a loser in the constituency's internal elections on Sunday. He failed to benefit from his father's stewardship of the constituency and lost to John Brown by 16 votes. This loss is seen by some party insiders as a further blow to "Team Portia's" chances in the September election. |