Intense ground campaign for Portland West

Saturday, November 21, 2009 4:38 PM

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BY ERICA VIRTUE Sunday Observer writer virtuee@jamaicaobserver.com

Sunday, March 22, 2009

ANYONE doubting the national significance of tomorrow's by-election for the Portland West parliamentary seat need only visit the rural constituency in the last week to be convinced otherwise.

The top officials of both the ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and the Opposition People's National Party (PNP) are out in full force, leading an intense campaign to woo voters who say they have never seen so many "political bigwigs" for any election in the constituency.

The People's National Party's Richard Azan talks with this unidentified woman who is wearing a T-shirt showing her support for Kenneth Rowe, the party's candidate for the West Portland seat. In the background are three other supporters. (Photos: Everard Owen)

But the stakes are high. Victory for the PNP's Kenneth Rowe will shave the Government's already razor-thin majority to three in the 60-seat Lower House, while a win for the JLP's Daryl Vaz will be greeted by the Bruce Golding Administration with a sigh of relief. at least for now, as the PNP has filed three other election petitions on the basis that JLP parliamentarians - Michael Stern (Clarendon North Western), Shahine Robinson (St Ann North Eastern), and Gregory Mair (St Catherine North Eastern) - held dual citizenship at the time of the September 2007 general elections.

Tomorrow's by-election has its genesis in a similar dual citizenship challenge filed against Vaz by Abe Dabdoub, the former labourite turned comrade who lost Portland West in the 2007 poll.

Dabdoub had asked the Supreme Court to disqualify Vaz on the ground that Vaz held US citizenship and hand him (Dabdoub) the seat. However, while the court ruled that Vaz was ineligible to sit in the Parliament, the chief justice turned down Dabdoub's request to be named the winner of the 2007 vote and ordered a by-election.

Jamaica Labour Party supporters on the campaign trail in Portland last week.

The chief justice's ruling was upheld by the Appeal Court last month, after which Prime Minister Golding set the election date.

Dabdoub, however, opted not to seek re-election and the PNP turned to Rowe, a disgruntled labourite who joined the PNP in 2006.

For the past three weeks, political activity in the constituency has spiked, as the election machinery of both parties have been put into full gear with representatives making their way to modest and lavish homes, greeting and shaking hands with voters, kissing babies and hugging children. PNP president Portia Simpson Miller has even been thanking JLP supporters for standing up for Jamaica and their party.

Last Tuesday, when the Sunday Observer toured several communities in the constituency, residents, obviously enjoying the attention, said they wouldn't mind having a by-election each week.

Freshly laid marl was seen on sections of roads in the Forty Acre community. But that, the residents said, was not the work of either candidate.

"This marl come since Sunday. Some big vehicles, back hoes, come and lay it and you hear that is Vaz doing work. But this road is not Vaz doing it or Rowe doing it, this is Digicel fixing the roads to the cell cites," said a man who identified himself only as G Goulbourne.

He said JLP deputy leader Audley Shaw (MP, Manchester North East) had passed in a motorcade, but he had not yet seen the PNP or Rowe.

"The way these people practise politics has not changed from (Alexander) Bustamante days. Politicians from both sides continue to feed on the ignorance of the people." Goulbourne said.

To prove his point he said, "There has been a flurry of zinc, ply (board), cement, and chicken going to residents since the ruling in the court case."

Recipients, he said, were some of those affected by last year's hurricane, but he believed it was now being used to shore up voter support.

"I don't care who is doing it," a returning resident said, "now I can drive my car that has been parked for years under the garage."

The by-election has also served as a boost for the economy of the parish. The Sunday Observer was unable to get figures, however hotels and guest houses are fully booked and the increasing demand for food has pleased operators of shops, bars and restaurants.

Goulbourne summed up what he described as "attention overkill".

"Politics and politicians carry too much feelings, and the church don't set any better example," he said. "This set of church people vex with you if you don't go their church. The politicians are the same thing. If it is not their party, then they carry feelings. That is why Jamaica is running on confusion."

A third candidate, Ras Astor Black of the Jamaica Alliance Movement, is entered for the race. We spotted his car in Buff Bay, but saw no sign of him.

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