Horace Chang
WESTERN BUREAU: THE AREA Three police have launched a full scale probe into the circumstances surrounding Wednesday night's incident in which Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) deputy leader, Horace Chang, pulled his firearm during a confrontation with a party supporter in St. Elizabeth.
Chairman of the JLP, Senator Bruce Golding, also announced yesterday that he had appointed a three-member team to investigate the incident. Consisting of Senator Anthony Johnson, Arthur Williams and attorney Oswald James, the team is required to submit its report to the party's Standing Committee.
ALL PARTIES TO BE QUESTIONED
"The matter is under investigation and sooner or later we will be seeking to interview Dr. Chang and the other persons involved," an officer at the Pedro Plains Police Station in St. Elizabeth told The Gleaner yesterday. "We cannot pre-empt the investigations because it could be a genuine case of assault as well as it could be a case of self-defence," he explained.
Shortly after 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Shernet Simpson, who is said to be a supporter of Senator Norman Horne, lodged a formal complaint to the Pedro Plains police, contending that Dr. Chang assaulted him and pointed a firearm in his face at a party meeting at the Jack Sprat Resort, in Treasure Beach. Senator Horne recently resigned from the JLP.
Terry-Ann Nembhard, constituency secretary for South East St. Elizabeth, yesterday contradicted Dr. Chang's account of the incident to The Gleaner.
In a statement, Ms. Nembhard alleged that Dr. Chang pulled his gun from his waist and pointed it at Mr. Simpson's head. She said colleague Member of Parliament J.C. Hutchinson took the gun out of Dr. Chang's hands in an effort to quell the situation.
"I am shocked, ashamed and mortified at Dr. Chang's behaviour," Ms. Nembhard said. "I want to be a part of a party that embodies transformational leadership."
