Opposition Leader Portia Simpson Miller, in an apparent message to her detractors who have been calling for her to step down, said that renewal does not mean getting rid of old members of the party or those who have dedicated their lives to the party.

Since the People’s National Party (PNP) loss at the polls there have been calls for the party president to step down or to announce a timeline for her departure.

But Simpson Miller, during her address at yesterday’s PNP Women’s Conference at the University of the West Indies in Kingston, said that an election loss was a part of the reality of the political process and that it simply meant that the party must regroup and renew itself.

“Renewal is not about discarding people who have given their lives to the movement, it is not about throwing out our party elders and stalwarts, renewal must involve looking where we went wrong and correcting the problem. Renewal is harnessing the best of our comrades, old and young, to propel our country forward and to contribute to Jamaica’s growth and development,” Simpson Miller added.

“In all of this we must put the interest of our party and country ahead of personal ambition. I will not allow the party to be destroyed by those who have not taken the time to learn its best traditions and principles. I have given over 40 years of service to this noble movement and will not lay down or sit back and allow this noble organisation to be destroyed at any time,” the PNP leader declared

The Opposition leader also told the gathering that she would never support those who continue to bring the party into disrepute by airing the party business in public.

“PNP business resides within the walls of the PNP from Norman Manley to Michael Manley to P J Patterson and nobody is going to get away with it now under Portia Simpson Miller,” she warned, adding that the party has had challenges before, but they were never discussed in public and were dealt with internally.

“Some people feel that when they don’t get their way they must mash up everything. Well to those let me say, you will not find comfort in the PNP,” said Simpson Miller.