PNP hangs tough with opposition to Portmore becoming parish

The Opposition People's National Party (PNP) has made clear its intention to have its objections heard when the final draft from the joint select committee on the proposal for Portmore to become Jamaica's 15th parish is presented to Parliament.

The motion for the report to be accepted was passed on Thursday with a vote of 7-2, with opposition committee members South St Catherine Member of Parliament Fitz Jackson and Opposition Senator Floyd Morris objecting.

The report will now be tabled in the House of Parliament where it will be debated.

During the sitting, Morris asked the committee to ensure that the minority report is attached to the final document that is to be submitted to parliament.

This triggered an objection from South West St Catherine MP Everald Warmington who argued that Jackson made a procedural error in that even though he gave notice of his intention to seek the consent of the committee, he had not in fact done so.

He further sought to block the attempt to have it attached.

However, committee chairman Dr Andrew Wheatley relented and allowed Jackson to move the motion for the minority report to be attached, which was seconded by Morris.

Interestingly, when the chairman moved the motion for the report to be attached, Government Senator Sherene Golding Campbell went on record as objecting and so it was passed 2-1.

Support for the proposal for Portmore, which is a municipality within St Catherine, to become a separate parish has been divided along political party lines and the issue was resurrected by the Jamaica Labour Party in its campaign leading up to the general elections last September.

The Andrew Holness-led party is looking to follow through with the plans, which include investment through infrastructure development such as a 'tech city' in the heart of Portmore, which is home to more than 200,000 residents and has had an annual growth rate of four per cent since 1991.

However, Jackson, whose constituency covers a section of Portmore, has contended that political expediency was at play and questioned the “material” difference that a parish designation would bring to residents.

He argued that when the Portmore municipality was created, residents felt that it was important to protect it from the political directorate and that was the reason they insisted that in the legislation that established the municipality, that the boundaries of Portmore should not be changed without consultation.

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