Gareth Manning, Gleaner Writer

The People's National Party (PNP) may need to seek professional help in order to bridge the divide within the party, psychologists advise.

At 70, the PNP has found itself at an all-time low, as it tries to heal from an unconventional challenge posed against the sitting president, Portia Simpson Miller, by Dr Peter Phillips.

Simpson Miller defeated Phillips for a second time to retain her post last Saturday, but the party remains bitterly divided between Phillips' Arise and Renew campaign and Simpson Miller's Team PNP.

Psychologist Dr Leahcim Semaj says the party is already showing signs of healing the wounds, with Arise and Renew members of the shadow Cabinet opting to tender their resignations in an effort to give Simpson Miller room to restructure her Council of Opposition spokespersons.

"Resignation is an integral part of the process. Even the media has been letting it sound like something negative," Semaj told The Gleaner yesterday.

"You're supposed to do that, and then the winner has a free hand to make a decision about what goes forward. It's part of the healing process."

Act decisively

He said once that has been done, the new leader must act decisively and choose a team that will incorporate the views and concerns of the minority faction.

"This will be the real test of Portia. If she can't unite the two factions within her own party, how can she unite Jamaica?" he said.

But the process will need a mediator, he said, both from within the party and another independent of the party.

Dr Omar Davies, the former spokesperson on finance who was a low-key supporter of Simpson Miller, has already offered himself as mediator, and Semaj says this must take place behind closed doors.

Behavioural scientist Dr Grace Kelly shares Semaj's view. She said the party would need someone neutral, but individuals need to begin talks before a mediator is invited.

"They will need to be locked away in a room for three days and deal with their underlying issues. Do some conflict management and take themselves away from the issues," Kelly advised.

"Because, a lot of the times when you have organisations with conflicts like this, it is because people are focusing on personalities and not the issue," she added.

"If it were possible I would personally volunteer to work with them."

gareth.manning@gleanerjm.com.