THE EDITOR, Sir:
IT SEEMS to me that women in Jamaica do not like to support their own gender where promotions within the private and public sectors are concerned. This is the trend in many fields of endeavour and no less so in the political arena.
This is also the trend at the University of the West Indies, Mona whereby male candidates for guild president and other prominent student body posts are usually victorious over female candidates.
As far as I can tell, Minister Portia Simpson Miller has yet to receive any strong public support or endorsements from well-established and influential women's groups within the society in her bid for the post of PNP president. Conversely, many such groups have endorsed one or more of the male PNP candidates in the PNP presidential race. Moreover, two prominent PNP female stalwarts, Beverly Anderson and Maxine Henry-Wilson, have publicly thrown their support behind Omar Davies and Peter Phillips respectively.
I believe that any hopes that Portia Simpson Miller has for becoming PNP president, and subsequently Prime Minister of Jamaica, will ultimately rest on the support of her male colleagues, male delegates and male members of the public. If my perception about women not throwing their support behind other women when they go after top level executive posts within the private and public sectors is wrong, I stand to be corrected.
I am, etc.,
PATRICK GALLIMORE
pagalley@hotmail.com
Kingston
