Garwin Davis, Gleaner Writer

Tourism Minister Aloun Assamba in happier times. - Norman Grindley/Deputy Chief Photographer

Ocho Rios, St. Ann:

Embattled Member of Parliament for south east St. Ann, Aloun Assamba, was never a people person, and would have been unceremoniously dumped had she not decided against seeking re-election, several of her own constituency officials said yesterday. They argued that Mrs. Assamba's claim of being undermined by sinister forces within the constituency was a weak attempt at covering up for what they say has been her failure to adequately represent the people of south East St. Ann.

"I heard Mrs. Assamba on radio talking about people being paid to protest against her stewardship which, I guess, is her way of trying to blame others for the problems she has created," said Lloyd Garrick, People's National Party (PNP) councillor for the Moneague division.

"I am not for sale and neither have I been part of any plot to undermine the MP. What we are seeing now is not a yesterday problem. What has led to Mrs. Assamba's demise is her failure to listen to the people; her failure to meet with them and to engage them in meaningful dialogue," Garrick told The Sunday Gleaner.

Overseas travelling

Asked whether Mrs. Assamba's high-profile job as Minister of Tourism, a position that requires a lot of overseas travelling, could have contributed to her not being in the constituency more frequently, Mr. Garrick said he would have to "respectfully disagree".

"Mr. Seymour Mullings," he noted, "was deputy prime minister and also the minister of foreign affairs yet he found time to work the constituency when he was the member of parliament. No two people are the same, but with the kind of representation we had become accustomed to with Mr. Mullings, it would have been very difficult to swallow what Mrs. Assamba was offering."

Last week, Mrs. Assamba told PNP officials, including party president and Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller, that she had no intention of running as a candidate in the next general election. This has come against the background that for the past several weeks, the Tourism Minister has had to contend with a number of street protests, with many PNP supporters calling for her removal as a candidate in the upcoming election.

Protests

Mrs. Assamba has steadfastly maintained that the protests had been carefully orchestrated by persons who had an interest in seeing her go and had nothing to do with her performance as Member of Parliament for south East St. Ann. The protests, however, did not escape the attention of senior party officials who, sources say, became convinced, that Mrs. Assamba could not survive the fall-out with her constituents, and have been busy over the past several weeks looking for a replacement. Contacted on Friday, the minister was in no mood to talk. "The Prime Minister has asked me to stay on as Minister of Tourism, which I will do, considering that I am still the sitting MP," she said. "I have nothing further to say on the matter."

Vinnette Robb, PNP councillor for the Calderwood division, said Mrs. Assamba's penchant for "talking down to people" was also a major reason why she had fallen out of favour with her constituents. "She just doesn't know how to talk to people," Ms. Robb said. "She has this thing where she would walk out of meetings in a fit of rage and is always threatening to resign. She has learnt nothing from Mr. Mullings, and had made the decision early that she would not make herself available to the people."