JLP KSAMC Caucus calls for resignation of Jesse James Clarke as PNP junior spokesman
Published:Tuesday | April 1, 2025 | 7:54 PM
The Jamaica Labour Party Caucus in the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) wants People’s National Party (PNP) Councillor Jesse James Clarke to resign as Opposition Junior Spokesman on Water over his claims that water being distributed by the National Water Commission (NWC) in parts of Kingston and St Andrew is contaminated.
The JLP councillors says if Clarke, who is the chairman of the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation's public health committee, does not step down he should be removed by PNP President Mark Golding.
They have accused Clarke making false, reckless and dangerous utterances about the country's water supply and that he should desist to avoid panic across the nation.
The JLP councillors have accused him of seeking political mileage.
Clarke, a microbiology and food quality lecturer, has raised concerns about the safety of the water supplied by the NWC to parts of the Corporate Area.
However, the NWC has rejected the claims.
The utility company has asserted that its operations meet the highest safety and quality standards and that its water is "continually monitored, thoroughly tested, and is in full compliance with the guidelines established by the Ministry of Health and Wellness and international best practices set by the World Health Organization (WHO).”
The JLP KSAMC Caucus says it is guided by independent technical advice and word from professional experts at the NWC who have already responded to Clarke’s claims regarding the testing and safety of water within the Corporate Area.
“What Councillor Clarke is doing is conflating data relating to source testing and the water quality within the distribution network. The reason that water is treated at the source is to remove contaminants. Additionally, Clarke's suggestion about major contaminants in the water supply has been rejected as patently false,” said Councillor Beverley Prince, speaking on behalf of the caucus.
“For the councillor to be making statements about the safety of water being consumed from an uninformed position is extremely reckless. I know that there are members of the PNP in senior roles who would profit from having the public switch in droves to buying bottled water from their distribution businesses. However, I urge the public to discern these statements and be reminded that the NWC and the Ministry of Health have repeatedly refuted the claims of Mr Clarke and the PNP,” added Prince, who is the Councillor for the Cassia Park Division.
She is reassuring the public that the NWC remains in full compliance with the guidelines established by the Ministry of Health and Wellness and international best practices set by the WHO.
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