Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Councillor Winston Maragh has publicly apologised for describing former Prime Minister Michael Manley as an idiot.

The apology comes as Maragh faced mounting criticisms for the comment he made during a JLP mass meeting in Clarendon on Thursday.

READ: Michael Manley was an idiot, says JLP councillor [3]

Speaking to The Gleaner/Power106 News Centre this afternoon, the councillor for the Rocky Point Division said by no stretch of the imagination does he believe that Manley, the former PNP president, was an idiot.

Claiming that his comments were taken out of context, Maragh said he was trying to convey that Manley’s political ideology and economic policies were mistakes that the country is still paying for.

READ: PNP demands JLP councillor apologise for calling Michael Manley an idiot [5]

He praised the former prime minister for what he calls good social programmes, but said his misadventure into socialism and communism cost Jamaica dearly.