SANTA CRUZ, St Elizabeth –

He is the new Member of Parliament for South East St Elizabeth, but Franklyn Witter says he will remain as mayor of Black River and Chairman of the St Elizabeth Parish Council pending the upcoming swearing of members of parliament.

This – in the aftermath of the September 3 elections which gave a narrow victory to the Jamaica Labour Party, which is now in the process of forming a new government under the leadership of new prime minister Bruce Golding.

Witter – one of three JLP candidates to win seats in St Elizabeth, giving their party a 3-1 parliamentary majority in the parish – says he will give up the mayor’s seat after the swearing-in ceremony but will remain as councillor for the Junction Division pending Local Government Elections, which is widely expected sometime later this year.

“It means I will still be the mayor and chairman of the Council at today’s council meeting (in Black River) but I would expect that by the next council meeting I would be an ordinary council member until the Local Government elections,” Witter told the Observer West.

In the 2003 Local Government elections, the JLP took the St Elizabeth Parish Council by a margin of nine divisions to six.

It is anticipated that the deputy mayor of St Elizabeth, Shirley Myers (JLP – Southfield Division) will take up the mantle as mayor when Witter steps aside.

In the parliamentary elections on September 3, Witter polled 9,064 votes to defeat Norman Horne of The People’s National Party (PNP) 8,520. The fringe National Democratic Movement’s (NDM’s) Conrad Powell got 32 votes and Independent candidate, Sharon Witter 28.