KINGSTON, Jamaica – Opposition Spokesman on Education, Training and Competitiveness, Damion Crawford says a disproportionate number of children in Jamaica are supported by only one parent compared to other nations worldwide.

He made the statement Sunday as he addressed the public session of the People’s National Party (PNP) 84th Annual Conference inside the National Arena.

Crawford had accused the governing Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) of trying to steal the ideas of the PNP including the issue of paternity.

“When we said paternity leave it’s because we recognised a social problem in this country,” said Crawford.

He said paternity leave was a recognition that children with one parent were the ones most likely to have malnutrition problems. He said they were also most likely to get into gangs and least likely to achieve success in school.

“Paternity leave is not a way to pay you less, it is a way to change our society,” he insisted.

“The time has come for the unit of family to be returned to one man and one woman in a household, ensuring that the child has both (parents’) support,” he added.

Crawford highlighted that worldwide, seven per cent of children had one parent. However, he said the situation in Jamaica was 47 per cent of children having the support of one parent.

“When a child has one parent, they lose the support of over 30 people because if the father not there then the grandmother and the grandfather are also not there, then the auntie and the uncle are also not there. Then the father friend is also not there. So 47 per cent of our children have 30 less people in support,” said the Opposition spokesman.

“So when we say paternity leave it was to make the father recognise from the start that he has a duty and a responsibility to a better country by making sure that there is a better family,” Crawford added.

He also lashed out at fathers who were not supporting their children.

“I don’t understand how a man can support a party but not support him children. If you don’t support yuh child…if you say you are a PNP you must make sure that your child receives your presence and support,” Crawford told the thousands of comrades gathered inside and outside a packed National Arena.

Meanwhile, Crawford accused the ruling JLP of lacking ideas.

“It is because the other party has no ideas why they want to change the politics to a politics of shoes and Clarks and dub plates and money because they have no ideas,” Crawford said.

“So obvious it is that they have no ideas, that the PNP’s manifesto is required reading for every labourite sitting in Jamaica Labour Party offices,” Crawford stated.

He also charged that the JLP has sought to hijack the PNP’s idea of ‘rent-to-buy’ that will allow low income earners paying rent to qualify for a mortgage.

“All of a sudden now the prime minister is putting up rent-to-buy every single day but he doesn’t understand what rent-to-buy is,” said Crawford.

He said that: “We knew that there were some people who didn’t have a pay slip. We knew that those who keep dance and make a money don’t have a pay slip to go to bank. We knew that those who sell downtown don’t have a pay slip to go to bank. We knew that some of the people who hustle and struggle every day in the streets could not get a mortgage without a pay slip.

“So we say allow them to prove that they can manage the mortgage by paying six months’ rent. And if you can pay six months’ rent it must be equal to three months’ pay slip of $80,000,” Crawford noted.

“Dem tek it now and say yuh rent for six years,” he said.