WESTMORELAND, Jamaica – Incumbent candidate for the Grange Hill Division in Westmoreland, Lawton McKenzie, who will be contesting the local government election as an independent, says he expects to retain his seat come February 26.

Speaking with Observer Online on Nomination Day on Thursday, McKenzie, who won the 2016 election on a People’s National Party (PNP) ticket, says he expects to seal his victory at the upcoming polls in “fine style.”

“My expectation is to return to the Westmoreland Municipal Cooperation in fine style. The first time I ran against Griffiths, it was a magisterial recount and then the next election after that I won this division by 800 and odd,” he said.

“It’s not something about making me win. It’s about what is due for the people,” he continued as he called out specific government ministers on unfulfilled promises made to the people in his division.

“I have a few ministries and ministers like Babsy Grange, Desmond McKenzie, Ed Bartlett to ask them to complete the promises that they have made to me…for instance, Ed Bartlett promise me to repair the clinic road and I am relying on him as a friend, as family and as a man of the soil from Westmoreland to ensure that the sick can go to the clinic.”

Mckenzie in late January expressed for the second time his intention to contest the local government elections as an independent candidate. This after being snubbed by the People’s National Party (PNP) in a selection exercise for the party’s representative for the polls.

“I am telling you that by tomorrow (today) I will declare myself as an independent candidate for the people of Grange Hill. I am willing to win the seat for the people,” McKenzie told the Jamaica Observer in January, hours after the PNP presented its candidates.

READ: Hopscotching councillor cries shame on PNP, declares himself independent again

Last July, McKenzie was among three councillors within the Westmoreland Western constituency who resigned from the PNP and initially declared themselves independent. The others were Ian Myles (Little London Division) and Garfield James (Sheffield Division).

Myles and James have since switched allegiance to the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), McKenzie retuned to the PNP last September.