BLACK RIVER, St Elizabeth – The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP)-dominated St Elizabeth Parish Council is being accused of political victimisation following the dismissal of a caretaker who was allegedly “disrespectful” to Prime Minister Bruce Golding.

Michael Bennett, caretaker for Independence Park, which is controlled by the parish council, lost his job yesterday following a seven-to-five vote along political lines of the parish council’s Establishment Committee in favour of his dismissal. Three councillors were reportedly absent during the vote. The council is controlled by the JLP nine to six over the opposition People’s National Party (PNP).

The allegation against Bennett is that he failed to unlock the gate of Independence Park last Friday evening (November 9) when Golding arrived by helicopter on the football field at the park. Police personnel were forced to break the lock on the gate to gain entry to the park in order to escort the prime minister to a party fundraising function at nearby Luana.

“I personally thought that this was a disrespectful gesture and hence I am calling for the termination of his employment with the St Elizabeth Parish Council,” said Mayor of Black River and chairman of the parish council, Shirley Myers, in a letter dated November 12 addressed to the secretary/manager of the St Elizabeth Parish Council, Gerald Lee. The mayor charged that Bennett had “prior knowledge” of the prime minister’s arrival.

But an aggrieved Bennett told the Observer by telephone yesterday that he was never told the prime minister was due to land by helicopter at Independence Park and had simply locked the gate of the park once daily activities ended, as is procedure. “Why would I want to lock out the prime minister? How dat help me?” asked Bennett yesterday. He said he only knew the prime minister was in the area when a friend called to tell him at close to 11:00 pm.

Bennett, who described himself as a staunch supporter of the PNP and a “party worker” in the September 3 parliamentary elections narrowly won by the JLP, was insistent yesterday that he was dismissed for political reasons.

He got support from the outgoing councillor for the Black River Division, the PNP’s Kern Smalling who accused his JLP colleagues of putting party interests over basic principle that would have required a proper investigation before “recklessly” rushing to judgement.

“They did not stop to think that a person is going to lose his job, they just thought of party and voted without giving the issue a proper hearing,” charged Smalling.

But when contacted late yesterday, Myers insisted that justice had been done.

“This is no politics, the man disrespect the prime minister,” said Myers. “The man deliberately lock the gate although he knew the prime minister was coming there,” the mayor added. Myers said the chief administrator of the parish council, secretary/ manager Lee was told by the police that they had relayed the message to Bennett of Golding’s arrival.

But last night Bennett vehemently denied speaking to any policeman or of having received any message prior to Golding’s arrival. He said subsequent investigations by him had revealed that a policeman had spoken to a “soldier” at Independence Park about the prime minister’s arrival but that no message was relayed.

Late last night the Observer spoke by telephone to a man identifying himself as a “JDF worker” who confirmed that he had spoken to a plain clothes man wearing a gun – whom he assumed to be a policeman – at Independence Park on Thursday, November 8 about the prime minister’s arrival.

“The gentleman drive up to me and ask if the field tough enough for the helicopter to land with the prime minister and I tell him ‘yes’, he didn’t leave any message and didn’t ask to speak to anyone else,” the self-described “JDF worker” said.