Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness has declared that his party, the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) is ready for the country’s next local government elections, which are due next month.
Holness held a meeting with the party’s senior officers on Sunday, where he received reports on the party’s readiness for an election.
Reports were submitted by Chairman Robert Montague, General Secretary Dr Horace Chang, Deputy Chairman Dr. Aundre Franklyn, Chairman of Area Council One Desmond McKenzie, and Party Treasurer Aubyn Hill.
In a statement, Holness said that based on the reports he received, he was “confident in the prospects of the Jamaica Labour Party for the upcoming elections, as the internal polling numbers showed the Jamaica Labour Party maintaining a strong lead in a majority of parish council seats.”
The local Government elections, which are constitutionally due every four years, were last held in November 2016. They were due to be held in November 2020 but were postponed as the world was still grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic — even though general elections were held in September of that year.
They were postponed again in January 2022 for the same reason — COVID-19.
In 2022, for a third time, the local government elections were postponed until no later than February 28, 2024.
Portmore parish status not an ‘election gimmick’
Holness also used the meeting to outline some “important perspectives” on issues on the national agenda.
He made it clear that making Portmore a parish was never intended as an election gimmick or a strategy to win Portmore. He noted that the country is evolving economically, culturally, and socially. This evolution requires the government to make strategic changes to enhance the development of areas like Portmore, which requires changes in definition and management to further its development.
Holness said his government would never seek to use the people of Portmore for narrow political objectives.
Read more: Portmore to become a parish by next local gov’t elections, says Jamaican MP
Roads as a ‘political flashpoint’
In the area of roads, Holness noted that roads have become a political flashpoint where some persons feel that in order to get their roads repaired, they must protest.
He advised that roads continue to be a critical priority for the government. Holness revealed that at the next sitting of Parliament, the government would outline a consultative process for communities to contribute to the decision-making on which roads should be repaired in their communities but emphasized that priority ought to be given to those roads considered to be pain points in communities.
