By ANDREW CLUNIS, Freelance Writer
VETERAN singer Bunny Wailer has announced the formation of a new political party which, he is convinced, can resurrect Jamaica. Wailer said the charter of the United Progressive People (UPP) party would be published shortly in newspapers and that he would be offering himself as a candidate for Member of Parliament in the next general election.
"If it is the people's will that I be selected to a position with responsibility for making certain decisions, I will definitely respond," he said.
The main tool of mobility of the UPP will be music of a revolutionary and educational nature and its core members will be those singers and musicians who have used music over the years to effect change in the country, said the singer.
"The emphasis will be on a musical campaign. The songs are there and there are many more to come, but we will find a way to get people to listen and accept the message," he said.
Lamenting the state of the education system Wailer said that "if we continue to raise the young the way we are doing, we are heading for more disaster. The young people today don't seem to have the capacity to understand what is going on around them and determine their future," he said.
On the matter of ganja legalisation, Wailer said it was time for the herb to be decriminalised.
"Ganja is not only for smoking as some people would have you believe. But this is something that is needed by the people medicinally and otherwise...We can solve Jamaica's economic crisis through the manufacturing of hemp-based products."
