The Most Honorable Percival Noel James Patterson, ON, OCC, PC, QC: March 30, 1992, to March 30, 2006
“P.J.,” as he is affectionately known to most Jamaicans, was born in Hanover on April 10, 1935.
A prominent attorney, he became a legend in Jamaican politics when he was the key strategist and campaign manager behind the PNP’s resounding victory in 1972. He would retain that reputation as one of Jamaica’s best political strategists for several years.
He joined the PNP in 1958 and, after the 1972 elections, was appointed as minister of industry, trade, and tourism. He rose to deputy prime minister and minister of development, planning, and production in 1978 and was reappointed deputy prime minister and minister of finance, planning, and production in 1989.
When Michael Manley retired in 1992 because of failing health, P.J. staved off competition from Portia Simpson Miller to be elected by the PNP as its leader and was appointed Jamaica’s sixth prime minister since independence. This was to be the first of four consecutive terms he served as prime minister—having established a record as Jamaica’s longest-serving prime minister, leading the PNP to general election victories in 1993, 1997, and 2002. In March 2006, he retired from politics to be succeeded by Portia Simpson Miller.
As prime minister, he sought to secure a place for Jamaica in the new global economic order of economic liberalization and deregulation. With steady hands and earning the respect of national and international investors, he modernized Jamaica’s financial sector, and the nation realized significant investment in tourism, road infrastructure, mining and information technology, and energy. One of his legacies was ending the nation’s 18-year borrowing relationship with the IMF, giving his government more latitude in implementing its economic policies.
Percival Noel James Patterson was widely respected at the national, regional, and international levels as a negotiator who consistently sought to settle differences and minimize confrontation. He proved to be a keen listener and thinker who made unapologetic statements.
