Desmond seeks answers about Portmore mayor by-election
Published:Monday | January 27, 2014 | 12:00 AM
MEMBER OF Parliament for West Kingston Desmond McKenzie on Sunday served notice of his intention to use Parliament to force the Government to come clean about the by-election to fill the vacancy created by Portmore Mayor George Lee's death last year.
McKenzie told the annual general meeting of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) that come tomorrow, the party would table a number of questions addressed to Minister of Local Government Noel Arscott to come clean on the way forward in filling the top post in the Portmore Municipality.
Delay tactic
Citing the Government's reason for the delay being the need for re-alignment of two constituency boundaries, McKenzie dismissed this as a delay tactic, pointing out the Electoral Commission had in fact given the Government two options on how to proceed without delay.
He explained that this was so because in this case, Portmore residents would be voting directly for the two councillors from the JLP and the People's National Party (PNP) but accused the ruling party of being afraid it might lose.
He told the meeting at the Olympic Gardens Civic Centre: "I hear the minister talking fluff about taking things for Cabinet to make a decision. The Cabinet of Jamaica don't need to interfere in this matter. It is the call of the Minister of Local Government and the Jamaica Labour Party is calling on Minister Arscott to announce the holding of polls for the Portmore Municipal elections."