Labourites: How Holness made St Andrew West Central a safe seat
Published:Tuesday | August 18, 2020 | 12:22 AM
Paul Clarke/Gleaner Writer
For decades, St Andrew West Central was a known hotspot of political violence and was seen as a swing seat that swayed with the pendulum of opportunism of either the People’s National Party (PNP) or the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP).
But party workers say that the incumbent, Prime Minister Andrew Holness, has fortified the seat against perennial loser Patrick Roberts, who is in the race again.
Elizabeth ‘Lyn’ Reid, who describes herself as a “rock-solid Labourite”, said that the constituency has been revived by a “young and responsible” representative.
“Andrew did it. He motivates the youths here, provides jobs for them, and he looks after the elderly,” said Reid, while praising Holness as the best to ever represent St Andrew West Central certainly after Ferdinand Yap-Sam, who won the seat in the 1980 election.
Holness in 1997 was a fresh-faced “thick-lens glasses” young man at age 25 when he defeated the PNP’s Dr Warren Blake to become MP.
Reid said Holness has surpassed all expectations and has placed the seat, bedevilled by political violence in the past, on a new trajectory and has encased it firmly in JLP control.
“When Andrew came here in 1997, it was more a PNP seat than a JLP one. But we worked on it. We had about 25,000 voters on our voters’ list for this constituency.
“Now we gone 30,188; so roughly out of that number, we are expecting about 28,000 persons eligible to vote, to vote Andrew and the JLP,” said a satisfied-looking Reid.
Since the 1997 election, Holness has garnered the majority of the votes, carving off 54 per cent in 2007 and again in 2011.
He went on to increase his margin in 2016, with 57.47 per cent, compared to 42.53 per cent for Patrick Roberts of the PNP.
Holness will again be up against Roberts for a fourth straight election.
Party worker Normalyn Wallace said the construction of the community centre and the improvement of other infrastructure throughout the constituency have endeared Holness to the people.
“Since he came to West Central, we have the civic centre, in Tower Hill, he constructed a mini centre where extra lessons are held. He has done a lot for St Andrew West Central, not just for JLP but also for people supporting the PNP,” she said.
PNP supporters charged, however, that Holness could hardly boast of any major accomplishments since taking charge as MP.
“Recall the last election. What you will find is that a large number of PNP people didn’t come out to vote. That’s why Mr Roberts is not the MP right now,” said one party worker who asked not to be named.
“PNP people didn’t come out to vote because they never liked what was going on the party. So since we are now rejuvenated when election day come, then we will see who is going to run St Andrew West Central - certainly not Andrew Holness.”
However, 54-year-old Vivenne Kirkpatrick countered that Holness has been a performer as prime minister, identifying roadworks at Three Miles (Portia Simpson Miller Square) and the removal of zinc fences in neighbourhoods as evidence.
She said the constituency has been better off with Holness as MP and that years of dedication to the development of young people has left him in good stead of the September 3 general election.