MONTEGO BAY, St James — People’s National Party (PNP) President Mark Golding is urging supporters to not be drawn into any sort of conflict or situations that might disturb the peace.

“We don’t want to react in anger to any form of provocation, my people. Don’t make them draw we out and make this thing into something ugly. We want a peaceful and loving election,” Golding appealed to PNP supporters during a campaign rally in Mount Salem Sunday night.

According to Golding, while he knows that people may get emotional, especially at a time like this, he wants Comrades to remain calm despite what provocation may come their way.

“We are blood and fire Comrades, we are passionate, and our resolve is unshakable, but the word is love, and I want to keep it clean and decent like how it has been tonight,” declared Golding against the backdrop of disturbing allegations from both sides about intimidation and the tearing down of campaign paraphernalia.

Over the weekend videos surfaced of people tearing down PNP campaign material in sections of St Thomas Eastern where the PNP’s Yvonne Rose-Marie Shaw is expected to face off with Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Member of Parliament Dr Patrece Charles. There were subsequent videos of JLP paraphernalia also being removed in a seeming tit for tat.

Reports also surfaced that well-known PNP activist Jairzenho Bailey and several JLP supporters had a war of words over the removal of campaign material.

Golding told the meeting in St James that he has since reported the matter to the police.

“In St Thomas I saw two videos of a location where some people, working apparently for the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), were in the business of tearing down billboards with PNP candidates on them and orange flags and fabric, and I said let me report this to the commissioner of police, and I did, because we do [not] want this to get out of hand, those things can’t vote,” said Golding as he urged his supporters to not be distracted from the mission of getting the PNP elected to form the next Government.

“We know that when the trumpet sounds and the election is called, the people of Jamaica are going to deliver a resounding victory for the People’s National Party,” he said.

He also used the opportunity to pay tribute to former Senator Don Wehby, who served as a minister in a JLP Administration and was named to the Senate by JLP leaders former Prime Minister Bruce Golding and current Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness.

“Some things should be above politics, and I heard the news late last night that somebody who I had worked closely with and who I respect, a great leader in the business community in this country and somebody who had delivered public service through the Senate and in Government, passed away after a long illness,” said Golding.

“He is a personal friend, and I want to, all of us, to respect him with a minute of silence for former Senator, the Honourable Don Wehby, Order of Jamaica. Let us honour him with a minute’s silence tonight. We are bigger than politics, we are Jamaicans, and the word is love,” added Golding as he expressed condolence to Wehby’s family and the GraceKennedy Group which he had led for a number of years.