Daraine Luton, Staff Reporter

Pickersgill

DESPITE SERVING notice on Sunday that he intends to move for an amendment of the People's National Party (PNP) constitution, which would give security of tenure to the office of the president, party chairman Robert Pickersgill said he was not rushing to put the issue to the vote.

"It will not come up at this conference," Pickersgill said.

The chairman's remarks came weeks after Portia Simpson Miller was forced to defend her position as president of the 70-year-old party.

Challenged

Simpson Miller, who was first elected in 2006, was challenged by Dr Peter Phillips, who said she had failed to unite the PNP or to bring general election success in 2007. Simpson Miller won by 373 votes but not before a bitter fight.

Speaking at a PNP press conference Wednesday, Pickersgill said he plans to bring the proposed amendment before the relevant structures of the party "as quickly as possible".

He said the proposal was not intended to serve as a means of protecting Simpson Miller from challenges.

"It is a principled position," emphasised Pickersgill.

Prior to the challenge to Simpson Miller, a convention had developed within the PNP not to challenge the president. With the exception of the general secretary, officers of the party may be challenged at any annual conference.

Annual review

"It was not helpful to subject the post of general secretary for annual review. For my part, the same thing applies, if not even more so important, to the president of the party," Pickersgill said.

Pickersgill said he was confident that the party would agree to protect the office.

"I hardly put proposals that are not accepted because I don't put half-baked proposals. I buttress it with facts, with history and with logic," he noted.