‘Labour force’ outshines PNP presence in Old Harbour on Nomination Day

Led by Member of Parliament Everald Warmington, the quartet of Steve Graham (Old Harbour Central Division), Keith Knight (Old Harbour North Division), Mark O’Connor (Church Pen Division) and Lloyd Grant (Old Harbour South Division) all affixed their signatures to the nomination form to confirm their candidacies.

They were accompanied by scores of supporters, clad in traditional green colours of the party, in a massive convoy that brought traffic to a standstill, as they jumped and pranced their way to the Old Harbour High School where nominations proceedings were held.

It was a major show of force by ‘Labourites’ shouting ‘showa’, a slogan popularize over the years to reaffirm one’s affinity to the party now serving its second consecutive term in office.

That the People’s National Party’s (PNP’s) candidates opted to complete their nomination formalities with individual grand entries, perhaps only served to mask the seismic forces on the ground.

Notwithstanding the smaller supporting cast escorting each Comrade candidate to the nomination centre, the day’s event still make a fascinating prelude leading up to the elections just under three weeks from now.

The JLP will be gunning for a second successful attempt to sweep all four divisions which will be historic in the constituency having achieved the feat in 2016. However, such ambitions will be truly tested on the day by four aspirants who are highly self-motivated and determine to create their own history.

Dr Kurt Waul (Old Harbour South Division) would have learnt his lessons hopefully after being trounced by Warmington in the 2020 general elections. As a native of Old Harbour where majority of the votes are likely to come from in that division, coupled with the strong political history that runs in the family, Dr Waul undoubtedly poses the most serious threat to a JLP sweep.

Adrian Samuda (Old Harbour North Division), Obryan Leighton (Old Harbour Central Division) and Natalie Ho (Church Pen Division) have been on the political hustings in their respective divisions for a considerable time now and remain undaunted by the multiple postponements over the last three years.

Both the JLP and the PNP have shared the winnings equally in Old Harbour North of the last four contested local government elections, but it has been more than three decades since the PNP won either Church Pen or Old Harbour Central divisions.

For the latter division, former councillor Esworth ‘Kojack’ Frankson, who won on a JLP ticket in 2012 before crossing the political floor during his reign after falling out with Warmington, is looking to spoil the party.

Frankson was one of the independent candidates nominated on the day and was in a buoyant mood just the way he was two years ago when he made his intentions to run public.

The odds are however, stacked heavily against him but his participation in the race to determine who represents the people in Old Harbour Central could have a major say in that outcome.

The last minute announcement by another former JLP councillor Gerval Weir to contest the Old Harbour North Division also serves as added spice for the main contestants to battle it out for the right to be the people’s representative at the local level.

So after today’s exercise: was the massive JLP crowd a false dawn or a reflection of its well-oiled machinery? Or was the PNP playing possum by holding its cards to its chest?

Now that all candidates are set after taking their mark, it is now onto the races.