PEOPLE’S National Party General Secretary Donald Buchanan on Sunday urged supporters in North-East St Ann to “not retaliate” but instead allow the police to carry out their investigation to determine whether the fire that destroyed a shop next to its constituency office earlier that day was the work of arsonists.

“Cool it and let the police investigate,” urged Buchanan, the outgoing Member of Parliament for South-West St Elizabeth, at the party’s mass rally at Bog Walk square on Sunday night.

The fire, which occurred at approximately 3:00 am, destroyed a welding shop along Windsor Road in St Ann’s Bay only a few feet from the party’s constituency office.

Only hours after the blaze, PNP representative for constituency, Oswest Senior-Smith, told the Observer that he had information that would suggest that the blaze was an “intentional act, calculated to send a message”.

Senior-Smith is trying to unseat the Jamaica Labour Party’s Shahine Robinson.

“…From information I have gathered so far, it was an intentional act …particularly since we have been on the ground over the past three to four weeks and it is obvious that the support of the PNP and myself has grown tremendously,” Senior-Smith said.

The police, in the meanwhile, said the matter was being treated as a case of suspected arson.