Warmington retiring from politics
EVERALD WARMINGTON is to exit the political scene and will not contest in the next general election for the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP).
Warmington, 67, made the announcement at a JLP Area Council Two meeting on Sunday.
“I won’t be around for much longer. After 50 years of serving and 20 years as member of parliament, it’s now time for me to say farewell,” the South West St Catherine Member of Parliament said as he broke the news to his constituents and the wider JLP membership.
Warmington has been the only JLP politician to be elected to Parliament in South West St Catherine.
“This seat was created in 1976 and it was gerrymandered to make sure it was a strong one for the PNP. Bruce [Golding] lost in ’76 by [approximately] 2,000 votes. I came in 1980. I won by [approximately] 4,000. I was sent into involuntary retirement in 1983 and they have lost every parish council election since then until I came back. I came back to you reluctantly. We have won every parish council election since then and we have won the constituency since then,”Warmington touted.
CONTROVERSIAL PERSONALITY
An often controversial personality, Warmington has featured prominently in the media during his time in politics.
The former state minister for water and housing was relieved of this duty by then Prime Minister Bruce Golding in 2011 following an outburst in which he told CVM TV anchorwoman Kerlyn Brown to “go to hell” during a live interview.
He was a United States citizen at the time of his nomination for the 2007 general election, which rendered him constitutionally ineligible to sit in Parliament.
He subsequently renounced his US citizenship and, in 2011, resigned as MP. A by-election was then called, but he eventually ran unopposed.
The JLP Area Council Two chairman on Sunday said he does not want to stand in the way of a younger person taking over the constituency.
Apparently poking fun at his colleague Mike Henry, Warmington quipped, “I don’t want nobody take me out of Parliament in a wheelchair. I don’t want to reach the stage where they put on Pampers pon me inside of Parliament. I must know when to go and when to allow a new leader and new young person to come and take over.”