PEOPLE’S National Party (PNP) Patriots President Omar Newell says most of the group’s members have committed to giving Mark Golding the nod to succeed party leader Dr Peter Phillips, who is set to demit office next month.

In an earlier interview with the Jamaica Observer, Newell had said the members of the young professional arm of the Opposition party would meet to discuss which of the two presidential candidates would receive their collective backing.

St Ann South Eastern Member of Parliament (MP) Lisa Hanna, who was nominated on Wednesday, is the other candidate vying to lead the party.

Since that interview, the group has been unable to definitively settle on one candidate, and its members have since been steadily declaring support for either candidate.

The Patriots boasts 26 delegates, who are expected to cast their ballots in the November 7 internal election.

“There are some members who believe that we should go individually, and there are some members who believe that we should endorse as an organisation. My own canvass is that my position has the support of the majority of members, but there are some formalities to be sorted. In terms of my own thinking of what the party needs, I feel Mark is the better of the two candidates, so I’m going with him,” Newell told the Observer earlier this week.

The group had previously met with both candidates, who are said to have presented their plans for the PNP.

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/majority-pnp-patriots-backing-golding-says-president_206058?profile=1373

MARK Golding has been described as undoubtedly the man for the job as People’s National Party (PNP) president, and who will be a uniting force for the fractured Opposition which suffered a 14-49 loss to the Jamaica Labour Party in the September 3 General Election.

Speaking at this week’s Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange, Dr Angela Brown Burke, Member of Parliament (MP) for St Andrew South Western and a key member of Golding’s campaign team, said: “I believe in the principles of the party and I am supporting Mark because he also believes in the principles on which the party is founded — social justice, equity and inclusiveness.”

Brown Burke pointed out that, despite both Hanna and Manchester Central MP Peter Bunting campaigning against her in the run-off for St Andrew South Western seat when MP Portia Simpson Miller retired, she backed Bunting when he went up against Dr Peter Phillips for party leadership.

“…I believe it’s not about me anymore; it’s about a whole host of individuals out there that are looking to the PNP to be their champion and their advocate,” she said.

“I’m supporting Mark Golding because I see Mark as an individual whose own performance and interactions in his constituency and in the party [has shown he] is a concensus builder, and I think that the party needs someone who understands what that means. I see him as a humble, yet respectful leader, a transformative leader, and that is what I believe the PNP needs at this time if we are to assure that we can capture the imagination of 60-odd per cent of individuals who didn’t come out to vote,” Brown Burke said.

Meanwhile, Patricia Sutherland, who lost to the JLP’s Pearnel Charles Jr in the race for the Clarendon South Eastern constituency, said: “I am here supporting Mark Golding because after the [election] loss, and after Peter Phillips decided to step down, I scanned for myself in the party for who I would want to lead, and I chose Mark even before he chose himself.”

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/-golding-embodies-the-principles-of-the-pnp-_205848

Mark’s team plans route to victory as he heads to nomination centre today

SUPPORTERS of People’s National Party (PNP) presidential candidate Mark Golding have been given a fillip following the release of the preliminary list of delegates, which they say show him with very strong support.

Golding is slated to be nominated today to contest the November 7 election for the PNP’s top job and will face off with Lisa Hanna, who was nominated on Wednesday — less than 48 hours after she told the Jamaica Observer that she enjoys the support of 10 of the party’s sitting Members of Parliament (MPs) and 63 of its 97 councillors.

But Golding’s Campaign Director Angela Brown Burke downplayed the significance of those numbers yesterday.

Brown Burke noted that when Portia Simpson Miller was elected PNP president in 2006, she was backed by about three of the sitting MPs at the time.

Highlighting the inclusive nature of the Golding campaign, Brown Burke said the support from the delegates on the ground has been very strong.

“It is looking very good and we have done our numbers, but it is never done until election day. We are checking the draft delegates’ list and we know that there will be objections, corrections, and changes, but we are comfortable with what we have seen so far,” she said.

“In a campaign, all the way up to election day there will be supporters, there will be those in the middle, and there will be those undecided, so we are continuing our work on the ground,” added Brown Burke.

The PNP Secretariat released the draft delegates’ list on Tuesday, with approximately 3,300 Comrades eligible to vote in the poll to elect the party’s sixth president. The final list is scheduled to be released on October 30.

While it is expected that changes will be made to the list, Observer sources close to the Golding camp yesterday pointed to the delegate-rich support enjoyed by some key Golding backers, including Peter Bunting, Dayton Campbell, Lothan Cousins, and Brown Burke herself.

According to the sources, if these key backers can convince the majority of their delegates to line up behind them it should be a sure victory for Golding.

Among the Golding backers with strong delegate support are former MPs Bunting (100), Dayton Campbell (77), Fenton Ferguson (88), and Colin Fagan (82).

Sitting MPs who back Golding include Cousins, with 70 delegates, Brown Burke (117 delegates), and Anthony Hylton (36 delegates).

But, despite the number of delegates in the constituency represented by the Golding backers, Brown Burke said the campaign team is still working on the ground.

“In the PNP we have long recognised that our leaders are important, but we know that you can never take the delegates for granted,” she said.

Hanna has also argued that she will get support from delegates in some of the constituencies represented by Golding supporters, including in Brown Burke’s St Andrew South Western constituency, where she has been endorsed by Councillor Audrey Smith-Facey.

Going into today’s nomination, Golding has affirmed that the time has come for him to put himself forward to lead the PNP.

“I think that I bring to the table the range of skills and attributes and approach that the party needs at this time. So it is really out of a sense of duty to Jamaica, because I regard the PNP as a very important institution in Jamaica, and I have a sense of duty to my party that I am putting myself up,” Golding told Observer reporters and editors at this week’s Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange, as he rejected claims that his candidacy was a continuation of the attempt by his close friend Bunting to lead the party.

Bunting, who had labelled his campaign “Rise”, lost his bid to unseat Dr Peter Phillips whose camp had adopted the name “One PNP”. The challenge reopened old wounds in the party and was fingered by some politicos and supporters as one of the reason’s for the PNP’s humiliating 14-49-seat loss to the Jamaica Labour Party in the September 3, 2020 General Election.

“The Rise Campaign is over. The One PNP Campaign is over. And, indeed, we have to put these things behind us on consignment to history, because the fact is that this challenge that we have is the lingering effect of many years of internal contests which have affected the cohesiveness of the party and the unity of the party,” Golding said on Monday.

“So I have really made a brave effort to indicate that I am doing this as Mark Golding, with a sense of duty and a sense of purposefulness and passion for the party that I believe in, and the Jamaica that I love — that is why I am doing this,” added Golding.

He charged that the factionalism and divisions in the PNP in the past must come to an end.

“We must move beyond that, and I am running a campaign of unity, of rebuilding, and of coming together under one big tent, as the PNP family,” said Golding.

As the November 7 People’s National Party (PNP) presidential election draws closer, prospective candidate Mark Golding is oozing with confidence that he can secure the seat at the helm of the 82-year-old political organisation.

Golding, who is expected to be nominated today, will face off with Lisa Hanna for the post.

“I can beat Lisa Hanna,” he said during a Gleaner Editors’ Forum yesterday. “We have been working hard on the ground, and, as you know, we have been active in social media to raise my profile.”

This is the first time Golding, 55, an attorney and investment banker, will be vying for a national position of leadership since his political career began in 2017.

“When I saw what was happening to the party, and the fact that Dr [Peter] Phillips is retiring, I decided that I have the skill set and the approach that is needed to move the party forward at this time,” said the St Andrew Southern member of parliament (MP).

A leaked internal poll commissioned by the party in September showed that Hanna, the St Ann South Eastern MP, was the more favourable pick among voters.

Among the 14 PNP MPs, 34 per cent of respondents said Hanna was best suited for the job.

Hanna also had the backing of 43 per cent of PNP delegates, compared to 21 per cent for Golding.

Golding reasoned that the polls were conducted before he declared his candidacy but said that since then, “significant work” has been done to introduce him to the wider society.

“I expect that the next poll, when it is done, will reflect the results of that effort. It’s not about a poll, anyway. It’s about who the delegates want to choose to lead the party, and the delegates are seasoned political individuals who love their party and will be making the choice that they think is best for the future of their party,” he said.

Golding added that he was focused on wooing delegates across the country.

“We are not leaving anybody out. I’ve been meeting with delegates across the island, and those meetings will continue, and, obviously, making phone calls to touch base. That is the basis on which we are able to assess how we stand currently, and that is why I am able to say that I am confident of victory,” he said.

Golding’s campaign director, Dr Angela Brown Burke, said the team would keep driving the message of what a Golding presidency would bring.

“The issue around unity – how we work together and [settle] our differences and how we make sure we understand the goal, which is the lifting up of the Jamaican people surrounding social justice and equality of opportunities – he is ideally placed to be the person who leads that. We only have to look at his record so far and his whole performance,” she said.

Meanwhile, campaign spokesperson Patricia Duncan-Sutherland shared that she is expecting a high voter turnout for the election, which is just over two weeks away.

“It’s a smaller group, so we can be in touch with them directly,” she said.

judana.murphy@gleanerjm.com

http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/lead-stories/20201023/golding-i-can-beat-hanna

MARK Golding has been described as undoubtedly the man for the job as People’s National Party (PNP) president, and who will be a uniting force for the fractured Opposition which suffered a 14-49 loss to the Jamaica Labour Party in the September 3 General Election.

Speaking at this week’s Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange, Dr Angela Brown Burke, Member of Parliament (MP) for St Andrew South Western and a key member of Golding’s campaign team, said: “I believe in the principles of the party and I am supporting Mark because he also believes in the principles on which the party is founded — social justice, equity and inclusiveness.”

Brown Burke pointed out that, despite both Hanna and Manchester Central MP Peter Bunting campaigning against her in the run-off for St Andrew South Western seat when MP Portia Simpson Miller retired, she backed Bunting when he went up against Dr Peter Phillips for party leadership.

“…I believe it’s not about me anymore; it’s about a whole host of individuals out there that are looking to the PNP to be their champion and their advocate,” she said.

“I’m supporting Mark Golding because I see Mark as an individual whose own performance and interactions in his constituency and in the party [has shown he] is a concensus builder, and I think that the party needs someone who understands what that means. I see him as a humble, yet respectful leader, a transformative leader, and that is what I believe the PNP needs at this time if we are to assure that we can capture the imagination of 60-odd per cent of individuals who didn’t come out to vote,” Brown Burke said.

Meanwhile, Patricia Sutherland, who lost to the JLP’s Pearnel Charles Jr in the race for the Clarendon South Eastern constituency, said: “I am here supporting Mark Golding because after the [election] loss, and after Peter Phillips decided to step down, I scanned for myself in the party for who I would want to lead, and I chose Mark even before he chose himself.”

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/-golding-embodies-the-principles-of-the-pnp-_205848?profile=1031

MARK Golding, the man seeking to replace Dr Peter Phillips as the People’s National Party (PNP) president next month, says he has no “immediate intention” of reversing the party leader’s Senate appointments should he emerge the victor of the internal election.

Golding, who would also become Opposition leader should he beat competitor Lisa Hanna, said he has met with the eight senators appointed by Dr Phillips — some of whom he has worked with during his stint in the Upper House — and was satisfied with the discussion they had.

“So, I have no immediate intention to change that,” he declared, during this week’s virtual Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange.

“I think there’s a big difference between a situation in which there are vacancies to be filled and a situation in which there are persons sitting in those positions,” he added.

Golding, who served as Leader of Opposition Business in the Senate before being elected to the Lower House as Member of Parliament for St Andrew Southern in 2016, said his priority going forward is to unite the battered party.

He said that needs to be done in a way that does not create waves.

“I don’t foresee a need to make any major changes, but this is a dynamic situation and we will assess it as time goes by. But I’m quite pleased that the team that we have there [can] acquit themselves well and so I have no present intention to make any major changes,” said Golding.

Dr Phillips, only weeks before his November 7 date to step down as PNP leader, announced his Senate picks, surprising some political watchers when he opted not to name former Manchester Central Member of Parliament Peter Bunting among them.

Bunting, whose loss in the September 3 General Election sent shock waves throughout the political arena, had challenged Phillips for the top job, losing by some 70-odd votes in an internal contest just over a year ago. He was backed by Golding, his business partner and friend.

Dr Phillips, though managing to retain his St Andrew East Central seat in the just-concluded parliamentary election, led the PNP to a crushing 14-49 defeat by the Jamaica Labour Party.

In identifying the senators, he said that the group reflects the party’s commitment to a Senate that is a distinct deliberative body as intended by the Constitution of Jamaica and does not, as a consequence, include any of the party’s unsuccessful candidates in the general elections.

He said it has been a long-standing principle of the party.

Since that time Norman Horne, one of Phillips’s picks, has signalled his intention to resign once a new leader takes the reins of the 82-year-old organisation, creating a vacancy.

Horne said his decision would give the next Opposition leader a free hand to appoint his or her senators.

On Monday, Hanna, who was also a guest of the Observer, while reiterating the party’s position on Senate appointments, suggested that Bunting could have a future there.

“It’s normally not the practice within the party to appoint persons who have necessarily lost their seat to the Senate but it’s a dialogue we can all have, certainly moving forward, to build the unity. I believe all Comrades have a space and I believe that we need the best people with the best talents in the best positions,” the Member of Parliament for St Ann South Eastern said.

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/golding-there-is-no-immediate-plan-to-change-opposition-senators_205884?profile=1031

People’s National Party (PNP) presidential hopeful, Mark Golding, officially kicked off his campaign on Sunday with a virtual launch that boasted endorsements from a number of private sector heavyweights as well as senior Comrades.

‘Go With Golding’ was the central theme of the event which lasted just under one hour and included presentations from Golding’s business colleagues Joseph M Matalon, Garfield Sinclair and Chris Dehring; Jamaican-American actress Sheryl Lee Ralph; along with campaign spokesperson Patricia Duncan-Sutherland and campaign director Dr Angela Brown-Burke.

All spoke about their interactions with Golding in both professional and personal capacities and touted his leadership qualities.

According to Brown-Burke, the prospect of Golding leading the PNP signals that the party is ready to step into a new political era which will bring about transformation.

“Since Mark Golding signalled his intention to run for president of the People’s National Party, I have been witnessing Comrades across the island unite around the concept of having real transformative change throughout the party. So as campaign director and a Comrade for life, I am going with Golding for real change,” Brown-Burke said.

For Duncan-Sutherland, having grown up in a politically-conscious PNP family and now with the party at a crossroad, it is an opportunity to create a newness in the party.

“I choose Mark Golding because at its core that man is love. At its core that man is genuine. He is a great listener and what our party needs right now is that persons that can pull us all together. So I am going for Golding because he is the man to bring unity to our party.

“He is the man that can actually give us a real chance of fixing what is wrong with us with our differences and disagreements and find a way to put that to cause synergy for our party,” Duncan-Sutherland said.

In their video presentations, Matalon expounded the virtues of Golding as a corporate lawyer, while Sinclair told the viewers that the PNP candidate was a “down-to-earth” man with street-level awareness. Dehring, on the other hand, tied Golding’s political aspirations as a means to serve and being able to deal with all members of the society as equals.

Also praising Golding were members of his South St Andrew Constituency, including some from Arnett Gardens Football Club, for which he is the chairman.

http://www.loopjamaica.com/content/comrades-business-leaders-go-golding-campaign-launch