FALMOUTH, Trelawny — FERNANDEZ ‘Bingie’ Smith, JLP councillor for the Sherwood Content Division, has backtracked on plans to exit representational politics and has now signalled his intention to replace Senator Dennis Meadows as the JLP candidate for North Trelawny in the next general election.

“I have expressed my intent to challenge Meadows …,” Smith told the Observer West. He said he had made his intentions known at the monthly meeting of the Trelawny Parish Council.

Smith said he has also sent off an application letter to the party executive.

“I have made a formal application by e-mail and hard copy to the general secretary of the party. It is now up to the party to put the due process in place. I will do nothing to disrupt

the political activities in the constituency, so I (will) refrain (from) any campaigning …,” he explained.

Meadows is the current JLP constituency caretaker for the constituency. He was defeated by the PNP’s Dr Patrick Harris during the 2007 general elections.

Recently, Harris who is serving his second term as MP announced his decision to walk away from representational politics at the end of this term.

Smith — who recently resigned as chairman of the Sherwood Content Division, saying it was a first step towards his exit from representational politics — explained that he had changed his mind due to intense pressure from Labourites for him to remain in politics.

“A day in politics is like a million years. And so after assessing the situation and the calls from the thousands of party supporters in North Trelawny, saying that rather than walking away I should represent them at the constituency level and after consultation with my family, friends and divisional executives, I have decided to make myself available to the JLP to contest the upcoming general election,” Smith said.

He explained that for his party to win the seat they will have to field a candidate, who is not only technically and intellectually inclined, but is popular among the grass-root masses.

“There is a void that has to be filled in terms of someone that can articulate and accelerate the social transformation process and to lead the process of wealth creation. The JLP has to reconfigure how they look at candidates. They have to combine the grass-roots factor and the technical capacity along with the ‘like’ factor,” said Smith.

In the 2003 Local Government elections, Smith defeated the PNP’s Calvin Seivwright. He was again successful at the polls in 2007, this time beating the PNP’s Telka Holt.