‘We a go wash out di green and leave them pale’

East Portland:

Agustus Cochran, a supporter of the People’s National Party (PNP), is predicting victory for his party, but Percival Scott of the ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has described his political rival’s Norman Manley-founded institution as handicapped.

Cochran, a 65-year-old resident of Cornwall Barracks in the upper Rio Grande Valley of Eastern Portland, and who has been a supporter of the PNP for more than four decades, is adamant that his party will rub out the green of the self-styled Labourites, and according to him, leave them bleached out.

“Mi vote ‘bout 40 years now, and my party a di real deal. We a go wash out di green and leave them pale,” declared Cochran.

“Dem get pale and wash out and we just a go bleach dem out. Mi see weh Bustamante (Sir Alexander Bustamante, founder of the JLP) and others do to rasta in dis country, so mi caan support dah side deh. A strictly Michael Manley mi say. So come election day, PNP a go washout di green people dem,” he added.

In the 2016 local government elections, the JLP won three out of the five divisions in East Portland, in addition to winning all four divisional seats in West Portland.

However, while Cochran has threatened to dilute the green of the JLP, Scott, who is a former supporter of the PNP, is heaping praise on the so-called prosperity plan, which, according to him, has transformed his life.

“Mi used to push cart and sell jelly coconut and all a climb tree, but mi done wid all that fi more than five years now,” said Scott.

“Since mi switch to JLP, mi now own mi own fishing boat and a send people go sea, go fishing. So mi better off right now than ever before. Right now PNP a handicap and the orange katch-up. We a go give it to them because a prosperity we say. Shower fi life. A dead dem dead,” he concluded.

FIRST-TIMERS

The verbal predictions took place on a day when all the candidates from the two major political parties in East and West Portland were nominated, including JLP incumbent Paul Thompson of the Manchioneal division, first-timers Shanique Green of the Fellowship division, Emile Rodney of Port Antonio; Rosemarie Lindo of Prospect, and Athlete Cleary of the Fairy Hill division.

About 12:15 p.m., PNP veteran Dexter Rowland of the Port Antonio division; another incumbent – Wayne McKenzie of Prospect – along with first-timers Colin Bell of Fellowship; Natalie Wright of Fairy Hill, and Shawn Cooke of Manchioneal division, were nominated.

Meanwhile, over in West Portland, JLP candidates, including incumbents Rohan Vassel of Balcarres division and Dian Hunter of Buff Bay, were duly nominated along with first-timers Clyde McKenzie of St Margaret’s Bay and Orton Manahan of Hope Bay division.

The nomination day activities climaxed with the PNP’s candidacy of Desmond Lewis from the Buff Bay division; Peter Evans of the Hope Bay division; David Sullivan from Balcarres; and Dennis Blackett of the St Margaret’s Bay division, who are all new candidates to the political arena.

editorial@gleanerjm.com