Taking politics out of the equation, as well as the famous love-hate relationship that Jamaicans have with their politicians, Dr Dayton Campbell — better known as the People’s National Party (PNP) secretary general — has a human story that is worth telling.

At first glance, Dr Campbell could appear arrogant and a man of bluster, but stripped down to his naked humanity he exposes a side of himself that might endear him to those who feel for the struggles of other people.

As he tells it — and who better than himself to tell his own story? — Dr Campbell grew up in the rural community of Bamboo, St Ann, attended Bamboo All-Age School then went on to Ferncourt High School, followed by Brown’s Town Community College.

Here now is where events would separate him from the typical student. He pursued higher education at The University of the West Indies (UWI) in the Faculty of Medical Sciences, from which he graduated in 2008 along with two of his other siblings on the same day.

One can read into that the level of determination it must have taken his parents, and possibly others who chipped in, to choose education as the great liberator, especially for the children of the poverty-stricken masses. We do not know if Dr Campbell and his siblings grew up poor, but the story gets more interesting.

During their educational journey, their father was incarcerated and their mother worked as a domestic helper. That would have put untold pressure on the family. At the very least, we can discern that life would not have been a bed of roses.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Basic Medical Sciences (BBMedSci), the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS), a clear sign of his inner strength, a fighting spirit, and unyielding ambition.

Dr Campbell, now a young medical doctor pursuing what he describes as his passion for service to the people, entered the political arena and was elected to the Jamaican Parliament in 2011. At 28 years old, he was the youngest parliamentarian elected in Independent Jamaica for the PNP and went on to serve nine years as a Member of Parliament (MP).

At that time, too, the PNP attests, he had just been accepted to pursue postgraduate studies in the Department of Surgery at The UWI, and later a Bachelor of Laws at the University of London, which he completed in 2015.

Dr Campbell served a brief stint as president of the Jamaica Medical Doctors Association in 2011 and practised at numerous medical facilities.

He was elected general secretary of the PNP in 2020, becoming one of the lead strategists overseeing the re-energising of the PNP. He represents the party on the Electoral Commission of Jamaica.

After feeling political heat in St Ann, which resulted in him losing his seat in the 2020 General Election, Dr Campbell moved to Whitehouse, Westmoreland, and launched a bid, eventually successful, to become MP for Westmoreland Eastern.

He implemented an extensive education programme called the 2nd Chance Initiative, voluntarily offering free Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) and Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) classes on the weekends, and skills training touching more than 3,612 students.

If Dr Campbell can bring his better side to politics, then Jamaica will be well served.