Patmore targets Trelawny Southern turnaround

By: Karen Madden

Image caption: Paul Patmore, the PNP’s candidate for Trelawny Southern.

Businessman and parliamentary hopeful Paul Patmore says one of his main motivations for contesting the upcoming general election is to restore Trelawny Southern from what he describes as 20 years of neglect – and to make it a model for farming communities across Jamaica.

The seat was last held by former Speaker of the House Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert, the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) representative, who is once again on the ballot for the September 3 polls. But Patmore, representing the People’s National Party (PNP), is pulling no punches in his critique of her leadership.

“She must go. She must never return to the Parliament. This is not about Paul Patmore and Dalrymple-Phillibert. This is about integrity and justice,” he told The Gleaner. 

“When she came here we had water, we had dams, we had reservoirs. Now, after 20 years, she has done nothing. We have never heard her speak for or about this constituency, even when she was House Speaker.”

Dalrymple-Philibert stepped down as Speaker in September 2023 amid a corruption scandal, after it was revealed she failed to declare the purchase of a Mercedes-Benz for six consecutive years. The Integrity Commission recommended eight criminal charges related to false declarations between 2015 and 2021. She was fined $900,000 following her guilty plea..

Despite the controversy, she was re-elected in a by-election on November 22, 2024, and resumed her parliamentary duties in December. Patmore, however, remains outraged.

“She should not have been allowed on the ballot. Bustamente would not have allowed it, neither would Seaga or Golding as leader. They would not have allowed it,” he said, referring to three past JLP leaders.

A self-described “son of the soil”, Patmore began his political journey in 2012 when he ran as an independent candidate in the local government elections and won the Lorimers Division – a JLP stronghold. He did not seek re-election after his term, but said the need to unseat Dalrymple-Philibert has pulled him back into the political arena.

During his tenure as councillor, Patmore said he established three water systems – two of which are still operational. If elected, he vows to restore the third, located in Thompson Town.

“I’ve been caretaker for a year and I have been doing a lot of work to address the road situation. In fact, we were able to complete work on the Lynch Free to Ulster Spring main road and have it reopened after being closed for 30 years. The reopening of that road is a great relief to our farmers and I know I can count on them for their votes. I will turn the spotlight on this constituency after it has been neglected for decades. I believe South Trelawny will be one of the best constituencies Jamaica has seen,” he said.

On Nomination Day – often seen as a symbolic show of strength – Patmore claimed the PNP had already gained momentum

“It’s the beginning of the end for Dalrymple,” he said. 

“People look on and see which party is better organised, and the PNP put on the better show. People are talking about the PNP for the first time since 1989. This is the first time that the JLP is behind in South Trelawny,” he claimed. “In the 2024 local government elections, the JLP won all four divisions, but there has been a big swing since then. All the internal polls on both sides show a PNP victory. The upset would be if Dalrymple wins.”

Warsop to the west, Albert Town to the north, Ulster Spring to the northeast, and Lorrimers to the south are the main communities in Trelawny Southern.

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