WESTERN BUREAU — The People’s National Party (PNP) has selected 52 year-old Ralson Anson as its candidate for the constituency of Western Hanover.

The announcement was made on Tuesday at a meeting held in the parish by party chairman Robert Pickersgill and the four persons who were vying for the seat.

The announcement ends months of speculation about who the party would select to replace sitting member of Parliament, Ben Claire, who announced last year that he was withdrawing from representational politics.

Shortly after Claire’s announcement, four persons began to work in the area in an effort to get the nod from the party’s hierarchy.

They are:

* Shauna Miller, a school teacher;

* Trevor Ruddock, former Western Westmoreland member of Parliament;

* Shaun Reynolds, an attorney who contested the seat on a National Democratic Movement ticket in 1997; and

* Anson, the deputy mayor of Lucea.

Anson, who is also the councillor for the Cauldwell Division of the Hanover Parish Council, told the Observer this week that he was very happy to be selected as the party’s candidate and promised to bring home the seat for the PNP.

He said his selection did not come as a surprise because he had worked very hard over the years and has earned the support and respect of the people.

A former campaign manager for Claire, Anson said that all the persons who were vying for the post have pledged their support in helping the party to retain the seat.

He said if he is elected, emphasis would be placed on training young people for jobs in the tourism sector, and added that the expansion of agriculture would also come in for some attention.

“These are the two main areas that I will be focusing on in the short term if elected, because I think they are very vital to the overall development of the constituency,” Anson said.

He is expected to be presented to the people of Western Hanover later this month.