Those who supported Peter Phillips with their mouths and money are not happy with his second defeat. Much hysterical stuff is being said about the future of the PNP.

The future of the PNP is looking very safe with the next generation of leaders : General Secretary Peter Bunting (has won 2 seats under difficult circumstances, made a fortune in banking before returning to the party, currently bringing all his private sector savvy and administrative smarts to reorganizing the PNP)

General Secretary Peter Bunting

AND Vice President Angela Brown Burke (ready to take over Maxine Henry Wilson’s constituency as soon as Maxine realizes it’s time to pack her bags, husband Paul Burke is still one of her biggest assets).

Vice President Angela Brown Burke (won more votes last Saturday than Portia or Peter)

Not to mention all the other young and not-so-young successors to in-power-far-too-long Portia, Peter, Maxine, Phillip, Bobby, Danny etc namely Basil Waite, Lisa Hanna, Natalie Neita Headley, Ian Hayles, Mark Golding, Raymond Pryce and Damion Crawford…….

The fact is that Portia has no successors in the party who are in her image (black, working-poor class origin, poorly educated, female) and Peter Phillip’s party, the party of Norman Manley (well educated brownings), is now in the hands of well educated black people.

The whole class battle is already history and vanishes with Portia. Still, we will hear about it as long as Portia is leader of the PNP and sending shudders through the middle class/would-be middle class.

As for Peter Phillips, he is, as they say, a slug who has landed in salt. A slow painful death of his non-too-stellar political career seems likely to follow.

“The Politics of Change: A Jamaican Testament” (Michael Manley)