Azan says mission remains incomplete
Published:Sunday | August 3, 2025 | 12:13 AM
Declaring that he has “unfinished business” in Clarendon North Western, former Member of Parliament Richard Azan is mounting a campaign to energise the People’s National Party (PNP) base and secure a return to Parliament.
“We working with them, mobilising them, explaining that a member of parliament’s job is not to have the title, but is someone who is supposed to serve, and that’s what I have been doing all these years,” he told The Sunday Gleaner.
Azan first won the seat in 2002 by defeating the Jamaica Labour Party’s (JLP) Michael Stern. After losing in 2007, he reclaimed the seat in 2011 and held it through 2016. However, he was narrowly defeated in 2020 by the JLP’s Phillip Henriques, polling 5,936 votes to Henriques’ 6,075.
Now, he faces JLP newcomer Warren Newby, a former senator and strategist. Azan, however, is confident his track record will sway voters.
“I always believe that I am the servant of the people,” he said. “Maybe some of the things that they have suggested cannot be done one way and, therefore, we have to think about another way, and we have dialogue and come to some agreement about how we can do it.”
TRACK RECORD
Azan cited road rehabilitation projects as key achievements, including upgrades from Spaldings to Cave Valley, Whiteshop to Belcarres, and Sanguinetti to Grantham, along with construction of Peace River Main Roads and Southwood Bridge. He also highlighted the development of community centres, a health centre in Moravia, early childhood institutions, and support for youth through health fairs, housing assistance, sports equipment, and skills training.
Azan, who resides in Spaldings in the constituency, dismissed his 2020 loss as a result of a national voter swing against the PNP, not dissatisfaction with his work.
“The numbers proved that the People’s National Party supporters did not come out and vote as they should,” he said.
The JLP won 49 of the 63 seats, leaving the PNP with only 14 in the last general election.
He accused Henriques of neglecting the constituency.
“There was a time when mongoose use to fraid a people, but now mongoose tan up and seh yuh cya pass mi because all the roads dem bush and all a dat. We have bridge washed away and not replaced,” he said.
This is especially frustrating for him, he said, because he spent “almost all [his] time as member of parliament to make sure our roads are in good shape”.
“Maybe not all of them 100 per cent, but you never go around and see the condition of the roads in this type of condition … . My record will stand. Not one can test,” he stated.
For the upcoming election, Azan promises improved water access by constructing portable dams and merging existing systems, including for communities like Silent Hill in Spaldings. He also pledged road upgrades, agricultural expansion, multipurpose courts, improved playing fields, youth training centres, and completion of the Frankfield and Spaldings markets.
Though he declined to dwell on Newby, Azan pushed back on suggestions about his rival’s organising skills.
“Newby is no more an organiser than I am,” he said. Pointing out that he has served as campaign manager in several elections since the 1980s. “I don’t use him as any superman, but [they] do what they have to do and people will say what they have to say.”
Azan’s strategy is focused on turning out voters in PNP strongholds Spaldings and Ritches, gaining ground in battleground Thompson Town, and pushing through the JLP’s defences in Frankfield.
“What I have been doing in all divisions is that we have been touching the base with all the people, and having more discussions about what we need to do,” he said. “I am not taking anything for [granted]. I believe that you don’t win an election till after election day, so I am doing what I’m supposed to be doing.”