Fried fish and Franklyn Witter - Rally-goer brings feast to JLP mass meeting

In the heart of a roaring sea of green in Half-Way Tree, St Andrew on Sunday, Nadine Blair is preparing to enjoy her feast.

She had travelled at least 60 miles from St Elizabeth to hear Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness announce the date for the country's 19th general election.

Clutching a square of foil in one hand, and the other resting near a hefty green food container, Blair was getting ready to fill her stomach, after enduring the long journey.

"I'm coming from St Elizabeth, far in distance, but not too far to come fi my MP and my party," Blair told THE STAR.

For the journey, she packed fried fish, rice and peas, and chicken - enough to share with fellow Labourites who wanted a bite.

"Nothing at all coulda mek me not reach Half-Way Tree today," said Blair, who is supporting Franklyn Witter's bid to win St Elizabeth South East for a third consecutive term. Witter, who she describes as "a man with humility", is set to face-off against the People's National Party's Norman Scott in the September 3 general election.

St Elizabeth South East has consistently gone with the party that forms the government since 1972.

On Sunday, as the music blared and the celebratory atmosphere intensified, Blair tore open the foil and shared her meal with her friends.

"I came prepared because this is not my first rally. Once mi deh here mi ready. From last night I've been planning for the trip, so I made sure my snacks are ready, and my juice and water are frozen. Last night, I fried a few fishes, and this morning I got up early and cooked rice and peas and chicken," she said.

Blair said that whenever she attends political meetings she makes it her mission to ensure her friends are well taken care of.

"Mi carry enough fi if dem want," she said.

The 52-year-old returned to Jamaica from England four years ago and settled in St Elizabeth. She said sharing is in her DNA.

"I came back to Jamaica, went to St Elizabeth and fell in love with the place," Blair told THE STAR.

Along with her husband, she decided to build her house in the breadbasket parish, and has called it her home ever since. She has been enamoured by "the energy you get from the people there," which she says perfectly complements her naturally kind and generous spirit.

"Everybody I meet, I treat like my own pickney. Big or small, I'm like everybody's mother. That's why mi haffi walk with so much food - because even after everything done, by the time we reach back on the bus, everybody a look fi something inna the bag. Dem know mi must have something."

That same spirit of generosity, she added, is what she admires most about Witter, the man she came to Kingston to support on Sunday.

"Our MP is the best, and one of the best South East St Elizabeth has ever seen. He is a man who looks after everybody, whether you are PNP or you are JLP, or indifferent. As long you reach out to Franklyn Witter, he will deal with you good. He's a man with humility. He genuinely loves people, and he has a wife, Normalyn Witter, is just the same," she said.