Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller welcomes Abe Dabdoub, former Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Member of Parliament, to the Government side of the Gordon House chamber. Mr. Dabdoub officially crossed the floor on January 30, making him the second Opposition MP to join the People's National Party in under a year. - Junior Dowie/Staff Photographer

THERE WERE cheers and jeers when Abe Dabdoub rose from his 'independent' seat in the House of Representatives to join the ranks of the governing People's National Party (PNP), last Tuesday.

He received the obligatory embrace from PNP president and Prime Minister, Portia Simpson Miller. But there were shouts of "Good riddance!" from the benches of the Opposition Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), of which Dabdoub was a member for 45 years.

Dabdoub, the current Member of Parliament for North East St. Catherine, resigned from the JLP in March last year. He had been out of favour with senior members of the party since the return of Bruce Golding from the National Democratic Movement (NDM) in late 2002.

No vision

In fact, Dabdoub said it was "the NDM-isation" of the JLP that influenced his move to the other side of the parliamentary aisle. The JLP, he said, had no vision and had lost touch with the principles on which it was founded.

The 62-year-old Dabdoub is the second parliamentarian to leave the JLP in six months. Last July, North West St. Ann MP, Verna Parchment, joined the PNP after a falling out with the party's hierarchy.

The defections give the PNP a 34-26 advantage in Parliament.

Dabdoub appeared at PNP rallies last year, spurring talk of a pending move. He has never made a secret of differences with Golding, whom he has described as selfish.

Golding, who many saw as the successor to Edward Seaga as JLP leader, left the party in 1995 to lead the NDM. With him went several JLP members who had become disillusioned with Seaga's autocratic style.

His return to the fold just before the October 2002 General Election was seen as a lifeline for the JLP, but they lost a close contest. Some in the party, including Dabdoub, did not welcome the prodigal with open arms.

Golding was elected to lead the party in early 2005 and promptly succeeded Seaga as MP for West Kingston. When he named his shadow Cabinet in July that year, there were no places for Dabdoub and Olivia 'Babsy' Grange, both Seaga loyalists.

Pearnel Charles, the MP for North Central Clarendon, was in the race for JLP president before eventually withdrawing. He is close friends with Dabdoub, who was part of his management team.

Although Dabdoub's switch was not surprising, he said it was "unfortunate".

"I believe Abe had more to contribute to the Labour Party once he got along with the leader, but he just didn't see himself working with Bruce," Charles told The Gleaner. "I don't think his leaving had anything to do with the JLP or the NDM as he said," Charles added. "Abe just decided he couldn't work with Bruce and that I think is a minus on his part."

Charles and Dabdoub have been friends for almost 40 years. The former said they met in the early 1970s when Charles was part of the JLP's campaign team for the 1972 General Election, and Dabdoub was about to lead the party's youth organisation.

The two formed a close bond, with Dabdoub often visiting Charles at Up Park Camp where he was detained for one year under the 1976 State of Emergency. Charles said his friend has a Jekyll-and-Hyde personality.

"He's a warm person if you know him, but he can be strident at times and quarrelsome," said Charles.

The son of Lebanese immigrants who did well in the retail industry, Dabdoub attended St. George's College and has been a practising lawyer since 1972.

Over the years, he has also served the JLP as councillor, senator and one of its members on the Electoral Advisory Committee (now Electoral Commission).

Dabdoub had several clashes with colleagues in the JLP, including Seaga.

He resigned from the party in early 1999, accusing Grange of character assassination when they ran for deputy leader.

Two years later, he was named MP for North East St. Catherine, beating the PNP's Phyllis Mitchell in a recount.

No confusion

Mitchell had been declared the winner in the 1997 General Election. Five years later, there was no confusion, as Dabdoub defeated Mitchell by over 600 votes.

In 2005, Dabdoub's constituents staged public protests and accused their MP of underperforming. The JLP subsequently replaced him with Gregory Mair, a former NDM member; it seemed the last straw for the combative Dabdoub, who resigned days after.

"It is clear to even the uninformed that I could have remained in the seat as a JLP candidate without having to face a challenge," he wrote in a letter published in The Gleaner. "My resignation has everything to do, however, with whether I consider in the best interests of the country, the JLP, under its present leadership, to be fit and proper to entrust with the governance of Jamaica."

There is speculation Dabdoub could represent the PNP for the West Portland seat in the upcoming general election. Interestingly, his opponent would be Daryl Vaz, another former NDM member.