It is now officially a two-man contest for the post of general secretary of the People’s National Party (PNP) with the shadow of the 2019 race between then sitting President Dr Peter Phillips and his One PNP team, and Peter Bunting and his Rise United team, covering the latest internal election.

This time it will be former One PNP supporter Raymond Pryce and Rise United campaign official Dr Dayton Campbell who will face off after Pryce yesterday confirmed rumours that he would be offering himself for the job.

“Following the requests of members of the party, including officers, executive members, other National Executive Council (NEC) members, and scores of delegates and supporters [I have] agreed to offer [myself] for the post of general secretary of the party on Sunday, November 29, 2020, at the next meeting of the NEC,” Pryce said in a release.

The former PNP deputy general secretary argued that he is best positioned to effectively support the new party president, Mark Golding, “and the wider organisation to rekindle the synergy and enthusiasm among those critical civil society groupings which were once associated with the national progressive movement”.

According to Pryce, the fortunes of the PNP are rooted in its ability to reignite the meaningful coalition of progressive forces that helped to modernise Jamaica.

Pryce said he would bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the post, having served the party at several levels, including regional secretary for its Region Four political organisation, chairman of the Communications Commission, and as director of operations in the Office of the Leader of the Opposition during the tenure of former Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller.

He underscored that he also served for several years as chairman of the PNP young professionals group, the Patriots, “and spearheaded the development and expansion of the organisation and made it a respected force within the national movement”.

Pryce noted that he also chaired the Policy and Advocacy Committee of the Patriots, “and provided the critical link between the party’s Policy Commission and a cadre of young professionals who were determined to have a say in the direction of the administration by helping to shape policies that were of benefit to young people”.

The outspoken Pryce won the St Elizabeth North Eastern seat on a PNP ticket in 2011 but was challenged for the right to represent the party in the 2016 General Election and gave way to Evon Redman, who retained the seat for the PNP.

Pryce returned to representational politics for the September 3, 2020 General Election but lost in his bid to wrest the St Catherine East Central seat from the Jamaica Labour Party’s Alando Terrelonge.

He had also suffered a defeat to Imani Duncan-Price in a 2019 contest to replace Ronald Thwaites as chairman of the PNP organisation in the Kingston Central constituency.

This time around Pryce is to face off with Dr Campbell, who is receiving the backing of Golding.

In a radio interview recently, Golding said he is hoping that the NEC will elect the person who he feels comfortable working with as the general secretary.

“He’s a hard worker,” Golding said in reference to Dr Campbell. “He’s very bright, savvy, and good with numbers. He’s a good organiser. He entered the politics quite young, and some of the brashness of youth may have manifested at times, but since he and I have been working closely, I’ve been mentoring him and I’ve seen significant maturity emerging… So I’m hoping that the NEC will respect that choice and elect him.”

But Pryce has argued that the unity of the party is the most critical challenge facing the new party president and its leadership.

“Therefore, the occupant of the seat of general secretary would be pivotal in steering the organisation’s rebuilding efforts,” argued Pryce.