FORMER Prime Minister P J Patterson has thrown his support behind People’s National Party (PNP) President Peter Phillips, who is leading the party in the September 3 General Election against the ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) led by Prime Minister Andrew Holness.

Patterson, who is absent from the political campaign because of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, praised the work of Phillips, who served in his Cabinet, in a statement from the PNP.

Below is the full text:

Anyone acquainted with politics in Jamaica, would know that I love election campaigns like bread loves butter. This is the first to be held in the course of a pandemic and persons of my age are confined to the pavilion and so I have to send my message through this medium ‘Live and Direct’.

The People’s National Party was created to place people at the centre of our policies.

We Put People First .

The emphasis has been on building a nation, where our voice can be heard clearly in the world outside.

The health and welfare of every nation require a rejection of temptation to indulge in political opportunism or greed.

We may be small in size but have become a powerful voice in the building of a world where there is peace and our relationships are spent in the fight against hunger, disease, poverty, ignorance and squatting.

Dr Peter Phillips has worked as a member of the team which built schools, increased the number of universities from one to six; built highways, modernised our airports, fashioned a well -organised transport system, modernised our health network, introduced new programmes such as PATH, JSIF, National Health Fund, and the Chase Fund.

But his greatest contribution is by far his work under the astute leadership of my beloved successor, Portia Simpson Miller, in pulling Jamaica back from the precipice of economic disaster and laying the sound foundations for growth and development.

As we currently face the greatest pandemic the world has ever seen and the challenges it brings, every Jamaican deserves a prime minister who will relentlessly fight for his citizens; demonstrate results and love for people and country. We need real substance rather than differences in style of appearance.

By any test, Dr Peter Phillips is undoubtedly a highly qualified leader to build a Jamaica that works for everyone. His commitment to accountability in government and his reputation as a champion for justice for all Jamaicans have been proven many times over.

The People’s National Party works together as a team. I am delighted at the quality and versatility of Team PNP as we create new opportunities for every section of our society.

Let us join together in building a nation where justice prevails in the distribution of resources, in social justice and a nation where we emphasise the virtues of a participatory democracy.