Outdoor agents for the People's National Party relax during yesterday's slow local government election-day activities at the Windward Road Primary and Junior High School in east Kingston. - Rudolph Brown/Chief Photographer
The 14th local government elections since universal adult suffrage ended yesterday without any fanfare, and with the majority of rural Jamaica seemingly otherwise occupied.
Election-day workers compared the day's proceedings with the general election in September, saying that while they expected a lower voter turnout they never expected to be bored.
When The Gleaner visited Spaldings in Clarendon, save for the closing of some schools, it was business as usual and, in many instances, fewer than 20 per cent of those eligible to vote had exercised their franchise.
The story was the same all over the island as parishes such as Trelawny saw long stretches of time passed between voters coming into a polling station.
A steady queue
There was one exception to the day's rule, in the Duanvale area, where up to mid-afternoon there was a steady queue at the polling station where the Jamaica Labour Party's representative, Jonathan Bartley, reported an unofficial 75 per cent voter turnout.
However, the lull continued in other parishes as The Gleaner trekked to Portland. There, incumbent Mayor Benny White was expected to have a fight on his hands after winning his seat by just 10 votes last time out.
The low turnout did not dampen his spirits as he still claimed he would widen the margin of victory this time around.
Over in St. Ann, things were no better in terms of turnout, as cars assigned to carry voters to polling stations ran empty for the most part.
At large polling stations, such as the St. Ann's Bay Primary, Ocho Rios Primary and the Steer Town Primary and Junior High schools, where things got a little chaotic in September, there was nothing.
In St. Mary, the voter turnout was a little better at some polling stations yesterday afternoon.
At the Fellowship Hall Health Ccentre, Electoral Office of Jamaica supervisor, Linda Darnel Sutherland, reported that the turnout was about 30 per cent. Things also looked much better at the Mango Valley Community Centre where just over 50 per cent of the 387 voters cast their ballots at polling division 28. In polling division 93, approximately 40 per cent of the 480 persons down to vote bothered to give themselves a voice.
The same figures held true for the turnout in Stewart Town and Mango Valley.
Things were also quiet in Manchester, with no reports of any incidents.
APOLOGY
With reference to an ad placed by Higgins Warner and published in The Sunday Gleaner of December 2, 2007, Page F14, we have had discussions with personnel of NCB and are not satisfied that Emile Higgins' assertion that NCB is withholding millions of U.S. dollars of Higgins Warner's money is accurate, as we are not convinced that Higgins Warner has any account whatsoever with NCB.
In the absence of certitude and with information from NCB rebutting the accuracy of the aforementioned statement, we are obliged to retract the statement and to apologise to NCB unreservedly for any embarrassment or damage to their reputation suffered as a result of the publication in question.
