Campaign music blares as voters cast ballot

Published in the Jamaica Gleaner: Tuesday | September 4, 2007

Despite warnings from the Electoral Office of Jamaica (EOJ) that no campaigning should take place on election day, residents of Olympic Gardens in St. Andrew West Central had a whale of a time playing campaign songs for the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP).

Just after 8:00 a.m. when The Gleaner news team visited the area, music boxes were seen mounted at a plaza directly across from the Olympic Gardens Health Centre which was being used as a polling station.

Party-like atmosphere

It was a party-like atmosphere that saw a selector making statements such as, "Patrick Roberts, tek weh yuhself", and "officer, let in the people, wi nuh want PNP run Jamaica". He also implored the residents to vote for the JLP.

When contacted, Director of Elections Danville Walker said he had received no report of the incident, but confirmed that that was a breach.

"I know the corner you speak of, but I doubt it had much effect as all the people of that corner are of that yolk," Walker said.

He added: "But you're right, it should not have been done."

Asked if there was a penalty for the act, Walker said that individuals would have been asked to discontinue and that would have been enough.

When the news team revisited the area at 2:30 p.m., all was quiet again.