IN the clearest sign yet of trouble brewing on the political horizon, a symbolic effort at peace in troubled sections of West Central St Andrew yesterday drew insults and hostilities and a bitter complaint from the Political Ombudsman.

“This is my worst reception. This is the mother of all walks. It (Andrew Holness’ behaviour) is offensive, and it is destructive to the peace process. In my four years as head of the PMI, I have never been insulted like this by any politician,” said an exasperated Bishop Herro Blair.

Blair went into West Central St Andrew as head of the Peace Management Initiative (PMI) in hopes of quelling the emerging political violence which has been blamed for the gun killing of two persons and injuring of two others in one week in the Cockburn Gardens community.

The police have blamed the killings on clashes between political factions.

But Holness, the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) member of parliament for the constituency, refused to take part in the scheduled peace walk.

As Blair along with People’s National Party (PNP) caretaker for the area, Patrick Roberts and members of the PMI – accompanied by police and the media – walked through sections of Cling Cling Avenue, Swallow Road and Pelican Parade, Holness, flanked by placard-bearing supporters, kept his distance from peace marchers, remaining more than 100 feet away.

“I will not be joining any peace walk if Patrick Roberts will be there,” Holness insisted, and declined to shake hands with Blair.

He had a change of mind later, exited his SUV and joined the group, but even then all was not well. The member of parliament accused Roberts of allegedly inciting the recent upsurge of violence in the community and reserved some harsh words for the PMI.

“There are some serious breaches of the code of conduct in this area that are being glossed over,” Holness declared. “There are people who associate with criminals and have criminals do their bidding and the PMI hugs them up.”

Blair, clearly embarrassed and offended by Holness’ snub, accused the MP of insulting him and of attempting to derail the peace process in the volatile communities. The ombudsman was also upset that persons with placards, most of them unflattering to Roberts, had come to the peace march.

“We have never had people demonstrating in this manner and it shows that there was some level of planned confrontation,” said the PMI head.

Roberts, in the meantime, said he participated in the walk to show that he was all for peace.

“We came here with the intention to walk hand-in-hand with Andrew and call for peace among persons who are all supporters of the Jamaica Labour Party,” Roberts said.

Apart from a few residents who stood at their gates and watched as the touring party walked through their community, the streets were bare. One of the few signs of life were uniformed cops who carried out foot patrols while police vehicles patrolled

the area.

The police are also blaming political tension for the recent upsurge of violence in the community.

According to the police, the tension in West Central St Andrew began to rise earlier this month when a brother and sister were shot and injured. Both are still hospitalised in serious but stable condition.

A few days later, in what the police suspect to be a reprisal, two cousins – 19-year-old Marlon Creary and Clyde Tucker, 32 – were shot dead at a premises on Cling

Cling Avenue.

Police said a house was firebombed and two persons, including a five-year-old child were shot and injured two days later.

Members of the constabulary and army have since been patrolling the area in an effort to keep a lid on the violence in the community.