WESTERN BUREAU -Vice-chairman of the Jamaica Labour Party affiliate group, General 2000, Ian Hayles yesterday withdrew from the selection race to represent the party in North Trelawny, citing personal and family commitments.

“Unfortunately several personal and family commitments have incapacitated my ability to effectively function in my current position and to continue my pursuit for the position of chairman for North Trelawny,” Hayles said yesterday in a letter to chairman of the party’s selection committee, Edward Seaga.

The G2K vice-chairman, in his letter which was copied to party chairman, Senator Bruce Golding; general secretary Karl Samuda and deputy leader in charge of the party’s Area Council Four, Horace Chang, also advised the party that he was stepping down as co-ordinator for the constituency.

Christopher Jobson last represented the party in North Trelawny, but resigned and migrated shortly after Dr Patrick Harris of the People’s National Party defeated him in the 2002 general elections.

Shortly after the 2002 election, Hayles began working in the constituency and was later mandated by the party to coordinate the political activities there, until a constituency chairman was named.

Since late last year, Hayles, who has been credited for the party’s outstanding performance in Trelawny during the last local government polls, has had to contend with at least three other aspirants for the job – businessman Edward Wallace, computer technician David Stephenson, and attorney Marisa Dalrymple, who joined the fray about three months ago.

The result, a party insider said, was that Hayles began to lose ground in the constituency and subsequently called for the speeding up of the selection of a constituency chairman/candidate.

Hayles told the Observer yesterday that the protracted delay in the selection of a candidate also contributed to his decision to quit.

“Over the last year I have spent an enormous sum of money in the constituency campaigning, and despite several promises that a selection would be held, none has taken place,” he said.

Earlier this year, deputy leader in charge of Area Council Four, Dr Horace Chang announced that delegates in the constituency would be given the chance to vote for a chairman in March.

The date was later pushed back to July, but the delegates in the constituency have not yet been given a chance to select a candidate.