The Editor, Sir:

I have to say I am very disappointed to see the constantly increasing mud-slinging aimed at our Prime Minister over the past few weeks. Of course, one expects that with elections fast approaching, there will be a lot of finger-pointing and insults flying from both sides, but the attacks on our Prime Minister have become downright nasty and malicious.

It's obvious that many people are upset merely by the fact that she is female. She once admitted publicly that she is often treated in a way that no one would treat a male PM, and even then her words were taken out of context and twisted into something else.

Why can't we take a step back and see her as more than a mere woman? We must learn to see past gender and look objectively at Portia's qualities and what she has done for Jamaica. Her solicitude for the poor and needy, her ambitious plans for our nation's future and her efforts to improve the whole Jamaican way of life are qualities that cannot be ignored.

Her opponents are merely trying to muddy her image as much as possible, because they realise how loved she is by the Jamaican people. She has become a heroine for the common man, and for good reason.

I am, etc.,

M. DALEY

michael2daley@yahoo.com