By Earl Moxam, Senior Gleaner Writer
AFTER MONTHS of speculation, Finance and Planning Minister Dr. Omar Davies, has confirmed that he will be seeking the presidency of the governing People's National Party (PNP) when the incumbent, Prime Minister P.J Patterson, demits office.
He will join an increasingly crowded field of presidential hopefuls, looking to enter the fray when Mr. Patterson announces his resignation, possibly next year.
"I reflected on the party and the country, and in looking at what I've done over the last 11 years, I feel certain that I'm fully equipped to handle that task, when the vacancy does arise, and yes, I will be offering myself as one of the contenders," Dr. Davies said in an interview with The Gleaner.
Asked about his suitability for the job, Dr. Davies pointed to his 10-and-a-half years as Finance Minister, "during which I've faced the full gamut of challenges, domestically and externally - and I've been able to deal with the issues that have arisen."
Regarded by many as a late entrant into politics, Dr. Davies is quick to point out that he was a group secretary at age 17 and constituency secretary for Central Clarendon at age 21.
It was only in 1993, however, that he was lured from his job as head of the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) to join the political directorate, first as a Senator and Minister without Portfolio, then as Member of Parliament for St. Andrew South and as Minister of Finance.
Prior to his PIOJ posting, the Glenmuir High School old boy was best known as a lecturer in Economics at the University of the West Indies (Mona).
Regarding his vision for leading the nation, Dr. Davies has identified a short list of priorities: education and skills training, crime control, and a general clean-up of the country.
"The first thing is to fix the school system as quickly as possible so that we stop churning out illiterates. When a student graduates at age 17 he should have the skills and competence required and where that is not happening we have to recapture that cohort. Regarding the crime situation, we have to make the country safe, not just for tourists, but for everyone to freely go where they want to go at any time and thirdly, we just need to clean up the place, which is generally filthy," Dr. Davies said.
Beyond those priorities, the presidential aspirant said that he would focus sharply on solving Jamaica's most pressing issues at home to make the country more competitive within the region and internationally.
While saying he had not yet put together a campaign team, Dr. Davies said that he had received many offers of support and had already identified "persons who could form the core of the campaign organisation".
Donald Buchanan, Minister of Water & Housing and Member of Parliament for St. Elizabeth South West, is not reticent about voicing his full support for Dr. Davies.
"Dr. Omar Davies is eminently qualified to become the leader of the PNP and Prime Minister of Jamaica when our present party leader and Prime Minister decides to call it quits. Dr. Davies has a very long and distinguished history of service to the PNP and to the people of Jamaica. He has been an outstanding finance minister and I think that all of his characteristics and approach to governance make him eminently qualified to succeed to such a position at the appropriate time."
A leading member of Portia Simpson's (now Simpson Miller) unsuccessful campaign team when she went up against P.J Patterson for the presidency in 1992, Mr. Buchanan is unabashed about his current support for Dr. Davies.
"This is 2004, not 1992!" he declared.
"Within the ranks of the PNP we have another five or six persons who could become party leader and Prime Minister. However from this field I believe Omar Davies is probably the most qualified in terms of both party service and in terms of distinguishing himself as a ministerial colleague," he said.
Sources say they expect the field of candidates to include Mrs. Simpson Miller, currently Minister of Local Government and Community Development, National Security Minister, Dr. Peter Phillips, and former Minister of Water and Housing, Dr. Karl Blythe.
Paul Burke, the controversial party activist, has also announced his intention to seek the presidency of the PNP, but not the job of Prime Minister.
Robert Pickersgill, chairman of the PNP, is also being mentioned as a possible candidate for the party presidency.
EDITOR'S NOTE: We will present more from Earl Moxam's interview with Dr. Davies in The Sunday Gleaner.
