THE CONTRETEMPS that has erupted in the People's National Party (PNP) over the defacing of private and public property with graffiti in St. Thomas on Sunday is a reminder that long, drawn-out campaigns tend to expose the ugly underbelly of Jamaican politics sooner rather than later.
It has also raised again the question of whether there should be a role for the Political Ombudsman in monitoring the conduct of internal party elections, instead of being restricted to national elections.
The PNP has done a much better job over the years of containing its internal disputes and wrangling than its main rival, the Jamaica Labour Party whose members seem to enjoy regular laundry days by the roadside. Occasionally, however, the cracks that have been carefully papered-over become exposed.
With incumbent party leader and Prime Minister P.J. Patterson indicating, several months ago, his intention to demit office before April of this year, the sometimes over-reaching ambitions of his would-be replacements and their hangers-on have been kicked into high gear.
As the various contenders step up their campaigning, the charges of underhanded behaviour have grown louder. They range from attempts to pad the party's delegates lists with persons not eligible to be counted as such, to bribery and more recently to the use of graffiti, ostensibly to espouse support for one candidate. Ironically, the handlers of the person for whom support is being touted, Mrs Portia Simpson Miller, has dismissed this as a badly disguised attempt to tarnish her team's reputation.
While the public should expect a certain level of maturity and civility to mark the PNP's contest, with the rivalry being as intense as it is, the tension may yet give way to the worst manifestations of Jamaican politics. The intervention of the Political Ombudsman should serve to remind the candidates and their handlers that the contest is of some import to the wider populace. The public then should have some assurance that those who aspire to lead are committed to the highest ideals of public service and are willing to submit themselves to the scrutiny of an independent arbitrator as the need arises.
The code of political conduct which the parties have signed should be adhered to, as much for internal elections as for national ones.
The Prime Minister would help the situation considerably by clearing the air as to his specific timetable for demitting office.
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