WITH general elections expected before year-end, the Observer’s Western Bureau will help you get to know your candidates in this end of the island.

Check this column every Saturday for information about those who are seeking your vote. Who are the candidates and why should you vote for them? This week, meet the Jamaica Labour Party’s Clive Mullings.

Name: Clive Mullings

Date of Birth: July 3, 1957

Constituency: West Central St James

An attorney by profession, Mullings has made a name for himself in Montego Bay. Indeed, most Montegonians readily associate this former president of the Cornwall Bar Association with the Talk Show JA Law, aired on Prime Time 25. However, older residents will remember him for his stint at the Fletchers Grove Baptist Church where he regularly offered free legal advice to Hanover residents.

From his early years, Mullings began to assume leadership roles, holding positions including deputy head boy of Kingston College and editor of the school magazine. His achievements did not end there. While studying law at the University of the West Indies, he was the first winner of the Carl Stone politics prize. He also served as assistant tutor with the late professor Stone in the department of government in the social sciences faculty.

He joined the ruling People’s National Party (PNP) in 1989, but switched in 1998 to the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and is presently making a bid to represent the latter in the West Central St James constituency.

And the JLP is counting on him to use his legal skills and strong community ties to woo the constituency’s middle and business classes. The father of four children, who now operates from Harbour Street chambers in Montego Bay, has met the challenge head-on.

At a recent press conference to announce his candidacy, he gave some insight into his approach to politics and his areas of focus for the constituency of West Central St James.

“I think this is a time, especially in St James, that we have to have a clear focus and a fresh focus. And whether you are in the PNP or the JLP doesn’t matter. The thing that is going to determine your position now is who the people have confidence in and who they’ll vote for. And that’s the platform I am going on.”

Does he think he is well known enough to win the seat?

“I take nothing for granted. I must confess, having lived there for 12 years, I like to think I’m well known but when you do that then you’ll fall into complacency. My approach is to go there, house to house, as long as it takes me so that people do know me and have no mistake as to who is intending to represent them.”

And his message?

“First and foremost, I think that apart from the obvious problem of roads, the first thing that I am concerned about is the lack of educational opportunities for our young people. Apart from job prospects, just the lack of opportunity for them.”

According to Mullings, other main areas of his focus include the following:

* infrastructural development which is conducive to the rapid expansion of commerce;

* proper collection and disposal of garbage;

* urban renewal with the repainting of facades, destruction of derelict buildings and removal of old cars;

* development of the Catherine Hall entertainment centre;

* removal of the sewage ponds and the use of state of the art solid waste removal technology to facilitate the outward expansion of the cruise shipping pier to facilitate mega-liners; and

* orderly development of housing settlements with security of tenure.