'A real man is here'...PNP presents retired SSP Steve McGregor to Kingston Central comrades
Published:Wednesday | January 15, 2025 | 9:58 PM
The People’s National Party (PNP) on Wednesday evening officially presented retired Senior Superintendent Steve McGregor as its candidate for Kingston Central in the next general elections, due by September, with mass endorsement from party officials who said he was the right man for the constituency at this time.
The constituency is one of 15 in the party’s Region Three – Corporate Area constituencies – and one which was a shock loss for the party in the 2020 general elections, which resulted in a Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) blowout of 49-14 seats.
McGregor’s presentation came three weeks after reports surfaced that caretaker Lawrence Rowe was replaced, which saw constituents opposing his removal.
The party was silent on the matter until last weekend, when it issued a release confirming the replacement.
The PNP later confirmed that the retired cop would be his replacement.
On Wednesday evening, several comrades endorsed McGregor’s candidature and called for unity.
McGregor pledged to meet with Rowe, who, in a social media post, outlined what he claimed he was offered to step away from the constituency.
In recommending himself to constituents, McGregor said that during his 41 years with the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), he not only built a brand but also a name for himself.
“I created for myself an image, a brand in the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), 41 years. I made a face, a name, and a voice, and the people loved that. I am not going to change. The only thing that has changed is that I have changed the colour, and I have made it a little bit more personal in that I have become a member of the PNP. So I am saying to all those who love Steve, and believe in Steve, come with Steve. Don’t care what colour you have on. From yuh did love Steve, continue loving Steve, and come with Steve. So a dat mi a say,” McGregor said to loud applause from comrades who gathered at the party’s constituency office.
He also addressed the issue of his replacing Rowe.
“There is one other thing that I must deal with. There is a situation that has to do with comrade Rowe. And I want to say thanks to comrade Rowe for holding the seat for me until I came here. Thanks,” he told the comrades, likening the situation to relay teams at the Olympic Games.
He said the team that often qualifies for the final is not necessarily the one that runs in the final, but after a win, everyone gets a gold medal.
He called for unity and promised a gold medal when the team wins.
Telling the comrades he was a son of the area, he said he had lived in Dunkirk, one of the gritty communities in the area, which shares a border with the Kingston Eastern and Port Royal and St Andrew South East constituencies.
Both PNP MPs Phillip Paulwell and Julian Robinson endorsed McGregor and urged the comrades to bring home McGregor.
They invoked the constituency’s history, noting that venerable PNP stalwarts of the past, including the party’s former leader and prime minister Michael Manley, represented the seat in Gordon House.
Others included Ralph Brown, former Kingston Mayor and local government minister, and Ronald Thwaites, who served as education minister.
Other notable comrades include Colonel Leslie Lloyd and Victor Cummings, while the Jamaica Labour Party’s Ryan Peralto served as a cabinet minister.
PNP general secretary Dr Dayton Campbell, who addressed the meeting, told the comrades that the party had an election to win and it was his duty to give party leader Mark Golding the best hand for the elections.
Golding, in endorsing McGregor, said he was a man of integrity and had skills that would be needed when he formed the next government.
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