THE UNSEEMLY squabbling involving the contenders in the race for leadership of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has reached a decisive stage, just over a week before the November 6 event.
This arises from what amounts to an ultimatum from Director of Elections Danville Walker who runs the Electoral Office of Jamaica (EOJ). Mr. Walker has told the contenders, Bruce Golding and Pearnel Charles, that the EOJ will not administer the elections as requested unless both aspirants sign off on an agreed delegates list.
Mr. Golding has been widely regarded as the front-runner in the contest to succeed party leader Edward Seaga. The party itself has announced that its central executive, the highest decision-making body outside of annual conference, passed a resolution on Monday approving the integrity of the delegates list for the annual conference.
On the other hand, Mr. Charles has indicated that he may go the route of court action to determine whether the delegates list is credible enough for the election.
The JLP, in Opposition for four terms, has developed a track record of discord which some observers say was sparked by the barring of Mr. Charles from the 1991 annual conference in which he was challenging for a deputy leader slot.
The more significant rupture was the departure of Mr. Golding in 1995 to form the ill-fated National Democratic Movement. His return to the JLP fold may not have generated the kind of unanimity to guarantee party solidarity. Indeed it was significant that Mr. Seaga's announcement earlier this year of his own stepping down from the leadership was not without pointed criticism of the man long regarded as his heir-apparent.
The internal squabbling of the JLP has gone beyond the point of healthy internal competition. It leaves the general public to harbour doubts about the capacity of the party as government-in-waiting to deal with the greater challenges of national administration if and when they return to power.
The EOJ, of course, is within its right to boycott the JLP's internal elections. It is not their responsibility under a national constitution that does not even recognise political parties.
As one of the major pillars of our two-party democracy the leaders of the JLP must stop the squabbling and set a better example for the national electorate.
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