Above: Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding (JIS Photo)

The election of a new leader of the Jamaica Labour Party must be taken in a mature, transparent and dignified manner, Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding said last night in a national address last night.

According to Golding, the party’s General Secretary has outlined the procedures for the election of a new leader, and the Electoral Office of Jamaica has been asked to manage the voting process.

Golding, who announced Sep. 25 his intention to step down as leader, said part of the consideration was what he called a recognition that it was time for a younger political generation to take over “whose vision can have a longer scope and who can bring new energy to the enormous tasks that confront us.”

“There are young people in my party, indeed both parties, who are capable of providing the leadership that the country requires at this time,” he said. “We must not, for the sake of personal ambition, block their emergence.”

–Jamaica Information Service