Peter Phillips must do no less than immediately offer his resignation as leader of opposition business in the House of Representatives. Mrs Simpson Miller should advise those senior proponents of his unsuccessful bid for the presidency of the People's National Party, who have posts in the party but were not elected by the delegates at large, to do likewise.

On whether Dr Phillips eventually resigns his seat in the House and walks away from party politics altogether, he has time to reflect on that. It, however, would not be an advisable course of action.

For now, though, it is important that Portia Simpson Miller, who retained the leadership of the PNP on Saturday with 54 per cent of the delegates' votes, be given space to shape the party. And, as Dr Phillips himself acknowledged in his concession statement Saturday, "there are some political consequences" for having challenged the incumbent leader and lost, although Mrs Simpson Miller, in the context of Jamaican and Caribbean politics cannot claim that her victory was overwhelming.

Portia's plans

Of particular interest now, is how Mrs Simpson Miller intends to use her mandate; the kind of party she wants to fashion and whether she plans to work over time to bring all factions of the PNP together. On that score, her victory speech was not particularly encouraging.

There is little doubt that over the last decade and a half or more, the PNP has lost its edge as a party of big ideas or transformational concepts. And while it was adept at winning elections, in government its competence in delivering economic growth has been wanting.

Indeed, during its 18 years in office that ended a year ago, including 18 months with Mrs Simpson Miller as prime minister, it has, not without reason, been dogged by charges of corruption and cronyism. And it has done little to change the politics of clientism and exclusion, having benefited from political garrisons.

It perhaps says much that someone as talented as Dr Fenton Ferguson, a competent official who was a thoughtful and measured spokesman for the Phillips campaign, came within a whisker of losing his job as one of the party's four vice-presidents. It speaks volumes, too, that during the leadership contest, discussion of ideas was drowned out by class warfare.

'No more argument'

Mrs Simpson Miller on Saturday, having made the point that there could be "no more argument" and that the delegates had "elected one leader" would have been expected to have gone further, opening the avenue for healing. She spoke words about unity, but largely in a context, tone and body language that merely told the defeated to fall in line.

That, however, is to lose sight of the fact that a substantial segment of her party is not satisfied with its direction. It is not enough to dismiss their concerns as illegitimate, or merely as sour grapes.

Indeed, if Dr Phillips believes that the agenda he outlined remains relevant, he need not leave politics but head to the backbenches, transform himself into a party grandee and use his mastery of parliamentary procedures to articulate the issues without being divisive.

Maybe having giving it some thought Mrs Simpson Miller will adjust her message.

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